Remedios Zafra: “One of the pillars of the coexistence of truth and lies is job insecurity”

In the 90s, Paul Virilio inquired about the counterbalance of critical reading of the Internet and coined the idea: information overload acts as a form of blindness. Thinking that something as positive as the democratization of information brings with it a double interpretation was the starting point Remedios Zafra (Córdoba, 1973) to think about information in the world at the Consello da Cultura Galega the trutha day coordinated by Xosé López and inaugurating the cycle Thinking or the World from Galicia.

The more viewed, the greater the value. The philosopher already spoke in Eyes and capital of scopic value, about «eyes as a new currency. We see it all the time, but it’s a different view”. The dynamics of social networks are in favor of “giving credit to the most viewed and the most viewed is not always a guarantee of value”. Is Virilio’s thinking still valid? “I think more than ever,” replies Zafra. In another text, the philosopher affirms that networked screens are a place where truth and lies naturally coexist. “Especially we have seen how truth flourishes in moments when knowledge and science were the pillars of society, in moments of greatest enlightenment, which precisely coincide with moments of greatest social justice and equality.”

Today’s society believes in the power of science, but “science has times that we have to understand and tolerate. Not tolerating these times contributes to the distortion and misrepresentation of information. And yet, “we live in a culture bred in impatience.” The philosopher illustrates this with two very representative objects: a button that allows the removal of distractions from the screen and anxiolytics, “which quickly and in accordance with the speed promoted by market culture avoid the anxiety and pain” of contemporary restlessness.

The frame of reference, the differentiation of the fantasy frame, has been lost. Truth and lies are intertwined. “One of the pillars of how truth and lies coexist today is job insecurity” of professionals who are focused on meeting certain time and volume requirements and getting opinions. And that, many times, generates unintentional misinformation. One that is not malicious. “If the pressure is that tomorrow there must be a title that will attract an audience to guarantee continuity of work, we are biased in the information.”

And this also happens in programming: «When we talk about the existence of an algorithmic culture that also favors disinformation It’s not because the developers have premeditation. It is normal that there is ignorance, working conditions supported quantitatively”.

How does democracy progress supported by half-truths? “Democratic values ​​are maintained in democracy. It seems like the truth, but even democracy in online culture is not guaranteed». Remedios Zafra opposes democracy, the rule of “citizens who we assume to be informed” to that of ohlocracy: the rule of the crowd, the mass “in which we allow ourselves to be carried away by appearances”. The networks are the ideal context for the reproduction of the Platonic myth of the cave and there seems to be “accommodation by public authorities” to what the masses demand “which puts democracy at risk”.