Nostrafuckingdamus

I see that Toby Young admitted that he got this wrong. We await with bated breath similar admissions for the other many many things he has asserted with little understanding, across many areas. Reliably wrong, as @hugorifkind has said.

“Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge"
― Charles Darwin, The Descent of Man

Here’s the problem: we have bred a cadre of commentators who have no expertise.

We made them. The Brendan O’Neills and Toby Youngs, Allison Pearsons, they don’t know how to do anything else. They’ve just very successfully monetised ignorance.

The nature of journalism has changed, and reporters doing in depth reporting is expensive, but opinions are cheap. Online presentation means that opinions can sit front and centre, with baity headlines that provoke or invite readers into a confirmation bias odyssey.

The polarising nature of online media draw those writers ever toward amplifying their contrarian or iconoclastic views, and foments them, makes them financially rewarding.

Who knows if they have influence beyond social media, but Boris Johnson is the type specimen.

Educated the expensive way, with no field of expertise, but the vague ability to construct a witty sentence. His ignorance knows no bounds, no in-depth knowledge of anything. A journalistic career based on deceit. https://bit.ly/2WvV240 

I have nothing to add to offer a solution. And it is not without irony that this thread is merely my opinion, and therefore may well be complete bollocks.