My Name was Supposed to be Elizabeth Ann

(third in an occasional series on Media Literacy)

During the Big Brother season 26 live finale, the two remaining contestants vying to win its ninety-day competition were reunited with their previously evicted housemates. Seven sat on a jury that would vote to select the $750,000 winner, while the other seven had been sent home following their evictions. Whereas the latter watched the series unfold, even watching and rewatching earlier episodes, the jury and final two remained secluded, cut off from news about current events to which the others were privy.  

Their jaws gaped when show host Julie Chen Moonves revealed Vice President Kamala Harris had become the Democratic candidate after President Biden dropped out of the race. 

The election was only 23 days away. 

To paraphrase Matt Kelly’s Pogo, ‘I have met the enemy and they is us.’

Wearied and worried about misinformation online, in the months and weeks leading up to November’s election I ‘snoozed’ some of my FB friends who continuously posted false, misleading, and confrontational content about issues facing our nation. The teacher in me wanted to correct them, to remind them to check their sources and to stop painting anyone who disagreed with them as somehow to blame for every single wrong in their life. The realist in me knew the futility of that approach. 

I mean, what if I told you that you are wrong about everything? 

If I said, You are to blame for everything that is wrong with my life and in my world?

Would you believe me? Change your behavior? 

Would you even continue reading this post?

Probably not. People believe what they want to believe and it’s really, really difficult to change their minds when they are vested in being RIGHT. Particularly regarding subjects about which they care deeply. 

Difficult, but not impossible. 

If you’re willing to try. If you’re willing to work at it.

Interested? 

Good!

Then let’s start with changing YOUR mind.

Let’s start with Big Brother. 

The series derives its title from a character in George Orwell’s 1949 classic, 1984, who–much like the 94 HD cameras and 113 microphones in the Big Brother house—monitors everything and everyone 24/7. 

Full disclosure: Love the book and used to teach it to my honors sophomores many moons ago. Not a fan of the show, however. Its manufactured drama, backstabbing, and self-serving manipulations celebrates and encourages the worst of human nature then pays them for it, and I do not find that mindset entertaining. And yet, my husband finds the contestants’ wrangling funny, occasionally tuning in when nothing else is on. Cue the finale, Hubby wanted to see who would win.

Still not a fan, but I am glad I watched, because the series and its finale demonstrate why many of us get our facts wrong, why many of us feel threatened by those who differ from or disagree with us, and what we can do to push back against those destructive tendencies.

Let’s consider those parallels.  

WE CHOOSE TO LIVE IN FILTER BUBBLES.

For contestants, that means the Big Brother house, wherein they agree to isolate themselves from everything except each other and the host–no TV, radio, or internet, and minimal (monitored) communication with family for approximately three months. THEY DON’T KNOW WHAT THEY DON’T KNOW because new ‘information’ is fed to them by other contestants, the host, and the AI instigator, and they have no way to verify its accuracy or seek additional perspectives–they can’t leave the house, they can’t check sources, they can’t glean information about events outside of the Big Brother house. 

For us non-contestants, that means getting our news and information from the same few sources, often those with worldviews similar to our own. 

In both scenarios, the loudest voices control the narrative, shouting down dissent and amplifying extreme views. 

WE DON’T DISTINGUISH FACT FROM OPINION.

We claim we ‘can’t.’

Instead, we conflate them, aka LIE. 

Like the contestants, we lie deliberately and we lie by omission and we lie to further our own interests. We lie to harm or distract others and to protect ourselves from discovery, and sometimes we lie because we think we’re speaking the truth. Because the source was convincing or agreed with us or echoed something we heard (and believed) before. Or because it feels good to be right. Or because, recognizing the difference is impossible so why bother?

On Big Brother, no one knows who said what or why they said it–whether it’s rumor, speculation, or fact–because not every contestant is privy to every interaction or conversation, particularly those soliloquies delivered in the confidential ‘Diary Room.’ And—see above—they have no reliable means to check.

Until after they’re evicted.

If sent home, the evicted can watch the recorded season. If sent to the jury, they can talk to other jurors–openly, without being recorded or watched. As do viewers, evictees have greater access to facts and evidence and can therefore decide more accurately which contestant they believe deserves to win. Which contestant deserves their vote.

You’re already home. You can watch whatever, read whatever, look up anything and everything you need to know. Trust, but verify. You check reviews before buying. Recommendations before bookings, records before switching doctors.

But when it comes to the accuracy and objectivity of your news feed?

Nah. Too much work.

WE SIT WITH THE SAME KIDS AT LUNCH EVERY DAY. 

Big Brother contestants are a diverse group: different genders, sexualities, religions, ethnicities, careers, educations, opinions, hobbies, families, preferences and prejudices. Personalities and life experiences. Yet all sixteen share one goal–to win the game and claim its three-quarter million dollar prize. They’re competitors, yes, but they need allies to win, so they forge alliances with like-minded contestants and try to influence weekly eviction votes, which viewers at home get to cast.

Yet, mob mentality often results, because contestants consistently fed misleading, false and incomplete information about their competitors become compelled to target communal ‘threats’ or dog-pile on ‘weaker’ contenders–claiming doing so is the best path forward for ‘the’ game, when what they really mean is, It’s the best path forward for ‘their individual game.’

Of course, the flaw in that me-first reasoning is ultimately, only one contestant can win. Which is fine when you’re strategizing gameplay, not brainstorming solutions to real world problems like inflation or immigration or gun violence or healthcare or education.

Problems that affect all of us, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, socio-economic class or political party.

Problems that WE CANNOT FIX, if we continue living like Big Brother contestants. With that approach, odds are we will ALL end up losing, like the 15 contestants who DON’T win the prize. 

WE IGNORE OUR VULNERABILITIES.

Sure, one of the sixteen earns the money, but the actual winner of  Big Brother isn’t actually a contestant, because Big Brother isn’t actually a game, it’s a business. 

Each episode is a product sold by the show’s creators to CBS to advertisers to viewers on their couches or devices. The more viewers, the more advertisers. The more advertisers, the more money earned. Oh, and the more money each contestant can earn. 

Remember those cameras and microphones? 

Show producers know everything about everyone because they have access to every word and every second of those 24/7 recordings. They design questions for the ‘confidential’ booth interviews, and they design the reward and Head of Household challenges, and each season they switch up the rules. Season 26, they added an AI instigator, one contestant whom viewers selected to spread rumors and misinformation that said instigator falsely attributed to other players.  

Likewise, even viewers are manipulated.  Producers edit and arrange what audiences see each episode to increase ratings and ad revenues because—remember— it’s a business whose product is entertainment, not food or cars or tech. 

Or information. 

Ever wonder why wartime leaders and their militaries prioritize accessing, scrambling, and destroying enemy communications? Because effective communication is both weapon and defense, the pillar upon which truly free societies must stand. Without it, the edifice falls and chaos ensues. 

Likewise, when you allow algorithms to dictate your feed, when you allow one person, one news outlet, one POV to shape your thinking, to determine your actions and how you perceive those who disagree with you, that, my friend, erodes that pillar as well.

To paraphrase Matt Kelly’s Pogo, ‘I have met the enemy and they is us.’

So what can we do to avoid those mistakes? To change not only others’ minds about issues that matter, but our own? 

First, MOVE OUT OF YOUR ‘HOUSE.’

Curate your news and information from a variety of sources, not just your go-to. Not just the ones that agree with the way you see the world. Just like show producers limit what viewers see, so too do media outlets—not enough minutes, not enough space, not enough interest. Being well informed is your responsibility and your choice.

Remember players’ shock upon learning Biden dropped out? 

Second, GROW YOUR ‘ALLIANCE.’

Talk WITH and LISTEN TO people whose opinions on hot-button issues differ from your own. You can’t expect others to listen to and agree with you, if you aren’t also willing to  listen to them, to see them not as your enemy but as human beings distinct from labels and categories. Who knows? You may learn you share similar struggles, concerns, and interests. You may decide it makes more sense to pool our resources, rather than try to win the game by and for ourselves. 

Remember how players’ attitudes towards their ‘enemies’ changed in the finale, when they talked to each other face to face? 

Third, PUSH BACK AGAINST AI.

Deep fakes and algorithms blur truth and discourage logic, but you can control and influence your news feed.

Read beyond headlines, whose connotative language provokes emotion and clicks. 

Check your facts. Who else is reporting the story and how?

While reading, listening or viewing, consider whether the story is telling you about events OR telling you how to feel about events. The latter is opinion, which may or may not be derived from fact.

Admit you don’t always get it right. Look again. Try again. Find out more information. Be willing to change your mind. 

Remember how players’ reacted to learning the AI instigator’s identity? Some claimed they’d suspected. Some claimed total surprise. All admitted they would have behaved differently with and toward that contestant, had they known his identity and motives while competing. 

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I read 1984 in 1983 when Ronald Reagan was president and the Cold War raged, and like so many other readers found the novel’s prescience chilling. Winston’s Oceania mirrored the Soviet Union, wielding torture, imprisonment, and death as consequences for free speech, independent thought, and challenges to authoritarian rule. At novel’s end, despite his rebellion, despite his relationship with Julia, Winston is captured then broken in Room 101. The lovers have betrayed each other, but he feels no remorse upon crossing paths later, only love for Big Brother.

Forty years later, the Soviet Union exists only in memory and history books, but its destructive ideologies prevail. Countries like China and Russia weaponize misinformation to sow distrust in our institutions. Me-first ideologues peddle hate to manufacture scapegoats, and AI seduces us with shortcuts and diversions, eroding our ability to reason and discern. In the weeks and months leading to November’s election, I saw too many handmade signs calling for a second Civil War. Calling for violence. Celebrating it, in fact. 

I can’t speak for you, but that’s not the kind of world I want to live in. That’s not the world I want to bequeath to my children.

I ‘snoozed’ Facebook friends whose content I found troubling. I didn’t call them out on social media or unfriend them in real life. Maybe someday I’ll need to, but for now I’d rather leave the door open for conversation.

Call me naive or overly optimist, I don’t care. I have never regretted encouraging people to become their best selves. 

I hope you’ll join me.  

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Looking for more posts in this series?

You can find them here and here.

Looking for ways to combat misinformation and bias?

If you want to learn what the ‘other side’ is thinking, you might also want to check out Tangle, “an independent, subscriber-supported politics newsletter that summarizes the best arguments from across the political spectrum on the news of the day,” then shares its founder’s “Take.” Readers are encouraged to weigh in, ask questions, and point out errors. Some of its content is behind a paywall, but most is free.

And if you want to learn how to talk to strangers, check out StoryCorps. StoryCorps is a non-profit “committed to the idea that everyone has an important story to tell and that everyone’s story matters. [Its mission is] to help us believe in each other by illuminating the humanity and possibility in us all — one story at a time.”

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ICYMI, excited to share….

My short, short story ‘He Could Have Read Her Signs’ appears in a recent issue of Quail Bell Magazine. You can read it here.

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Next up on MY NAME WAS SUPPOSED TO BE ELIZABETH ANN….

Reading, Writing, and Resolutions: As I write, it’s December 5th and lake effect snow continues to fall outside my home away from home window. I am thiiiis close to meeting my goal to read 100 books in 2024, but honestly, I’d rather watch cheesy, feel-good Christmas movies. January, I’ll share  highlights, insights, and book recommendations from my 2024 reading challenge, as well as reading and writing goals for 2025. Will I make it? Will I want to do it again? Check in next year to find out!!

Speaking of writing-…

I’ve shared stories about participating in StoryADay May’s annual writing challenge and its wonderfully supportive writing community, Superstars, both founded by my friend Julie Duffy. Julie’s asked me to share information about some exciting opportunities she’s offering, available only for the next few weeks. If you’re a writer like me, with a need to prioritize your writing life, you might want to check them out. Full disclosure, should you join I may be compensated, but that’s not why I’m suggesting you take a look. I’ve been a member of StoryAday’s Superstars community since 2019, and my only regret about joining is not joining sooner!!

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Thanks for reading!! Thanks for sharing!!

See you next year 🙂

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