Do you ever actually check the Facebook pages of people who create posts you vehemently agree with? It’s so easy to scream. “Yeah! That’s exactly what I think!” and hit the share button, without considering where said clever piece of writing originated and why it was produced in the first place.
I did it myself recently with a story about a woman who spoke about losing the thrill of teaching as she sadly closed the door to her classroom for the last time. The story was well-written, but the fact that Mrs. Robinson, the teacher in question, lacked a first name or place of employment, and there was no identified writer was a tipoff that the piece was a fabrication. Still, the sentiment was spot on, especially when you consider that I spent 20 years teaching. I shared the story with the caveat that I while I understood the problems associated with the piece, I decided to pass it on, because I agreed with the comments within.
And it still bothers me.
Why? First, I was a reporter for about 15 years in both television and print. And like every other reporter out there, I wanted my name in big bold letters on the screen or at the top of my stories. A byline is the reason we’re out there. Our work is not supposed to be anonymous. Let’s face it, reporters—even back in the days before a handful were garnering huge paychecks for injecting their opinions into stories—have always wanted to take credit for their work.
Note that another story circulating recently cited a mother with Down’s syndrome who raised a woman who went on to become an astronaut. Wow! It was hard not to succumb to tears with that one. Still, since there are relatively few astronauts on the planet, it was easy to prove that the events depicted never occurred.
So the question is why are unknown entities producing stories that are fictitious in order to get us to wantonly share them without thinking first. In the case of the teacher Mrs. Robinson, the Facebook page that appears to have produced it is called Things That Make you Think, a link that currently has 113,000 followers. There is no information about who might be at the helm of this site. All the posts appear to have AI generated photographs like the one above that are designed to draw sympathy from the reader. It’s probably a good bet that the story is also AI generated. The site is asking readers to subscribe, so in this case perhaps the incentive is purely financial. “Your support means the world. It helps us write more stories that heal the heart and stir the soul. Subscribe to “Things That Make You Think” to support our work—and unlock exclusive stories you won’t find anywhere else.”
Then there are the posts where famous people are doing or saying things that catch your eye. Like the one where Payton Manning escorts a boy with autism to his senior prom? Well, you’ve being conned again. This piece and others like it are fabricated. Why? I have no clue.
Here’s the thing. I love fictional stories. Gosh, I’ve written six traditionally published novels. I wouldn’t mind if the site explained that the stories are purely fiction, but the pieces are presented as true and I don’t like being lied to.
Other similar sites are clearly political. Both the right and left splash colorful, all-caps kinds of stories decrying the other side, utilizing often photoshopped and/or AI generated pictures and videos presented to make us angry. Maybe they’re hoping to shock you into handing over your credit card number. Consider Occupy Democrats, a site that back in 2022 was accused of raising $800,000 dollars for its so-called election fund, but donated none of the money to federal candidates and where a big chunk of that money went to one of the two brothers who run the site. Then there’s the Republican Tea Party Facebook page. The problem there is the link, teaparty.org, doesn’t exist, so is the site even affiliated with the political part of the same name? Do it’s 350,000 followers even care? Their posts mirror those of Occupy Democrats, and while some of the facts included might be true, many times they’re exagerated and hyper-partisan, nothing more than click-bait to get readers enraged.
I just can’t stop wodering why real stories with real people and real facts composed by real writers aren’t enough. Perhaps we’re being intentionally desensitized to the truth, so that someday truth won’t matter.
That scares me.
Maybe it’s time we united and took a stand. If you think truth matters, join me and take a bit more time to read between the lines. Then think twice before hitting that share button.
Wolf Catcher
Anne Montgomery
Historical Fiction
In 1939, archeologists uncovered a tomb at the Northern Arizona site called Ridge Ruin. The man, bedecked in fine turquoise jewelry and intricate bead work, was surrounded by wooden swords with handles carved into animal hooves and human hands. The Hopi workers stepped back from the grave, knowing what the Moochiwimi sticks meant. This man, buried nine hundred years earlier, was a magician.
Former television journalist Kate Butler hangs on to her investigative reporting career by writing freelance magazine articles. Her research on The Magician shows he bore some European facial characteristics and physical qualities that made him different from the people who buried him. Her quest to discover The Magician’s origin carries her back to a time when the high desert world was shattered by the birth of a volcano and into the present-day dangers of archeological looting where black market sales of antiquities can lead to murder.
Bookstores, libraries, and other booksellers can order copies directly from the Ingram Catalog.
Anne Montgomery’s novels can be found wherever books are sold.
Author Anne Montgomery 
The distractions are getting worse, and AI manipulating people’s emotions is a new thing we have to deal with these days. Great post, Anne. Too bad you had to write it though. Cheers!
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Thank you, Sharon! Perhaps if we are all more aware, things will improve. Here’s hoping.
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