ACX
Journalism and Legible Expertise
Scott explores why journalists struggle to write controversial articles about topics like COVID-19 due to experts' reluctance to be interviewed.
4 min read 552 words
A thread through the archive
media criticism
Essays tagged “media criticism”. Follow an idea across the archive.
Essays on media criticism
75 essaysSSC
A Failure, But Not Of Prediction
Scott Alexander argues that the media's failure in coronavirus coverage was not about prediction, but about poor probabilistic reasoning and decision-making under uncertainty.
28 min read 4,215 words
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Against Against Pseudoaddiction
Scott Alexander argues that pseudoaddiction is a real and important concept, despite being widely denounced as pharma propaganda in the context of the opioid crisis.
37 min read 5,604 words
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Postscript To APA Photo-Essay
Scott Alexander clarifies his intentions behind the APA photo-essay and cautions against overly negative interpretations of psychiatry or any professional field based on selective criticism.
4 min read 496 words
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Links 4/2019
A diverse collection of links covering technology, science, economics, politics, and culture, including critiques of studies, interesting scientific findings, and current events.
18 min read 2,733 words
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Before You Get Too Excited About That Trigger Warning Study…
Scott Alexander critiques a misreported study on trigger warnings, highlighting its flaws and limited relevance to the broader debate on their use in colleges.
11 min read 1,692 words
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SSC Survey Results: Sexual Harassment Levels By Field
Scott Alexander analyzes survey data showing lower sexual harassment rates in STEM fields compared to other industries, contradicting media narratives, while urging caution and calling for more research.
19 min read 2,938 words
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Two Kinds Of Caution
Scott criticizes an article downplaying AI risks in favor of mundane technologies, arguing this represents misplaced caution given AI's potential existential threat.
13 min read 1,903 words
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Silicon Valley: A Reality Check
Scott Alexander argues that media criticism of Silicon Valley based on products like Juicero ignores the significant innovative and altruistic work being done in the tech hub.
13 min read 1,901 words
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Links 3/17: Relinkquishment
A links post featuring various news stories, research findings, and interesting facts, from Jewish pirates to ancient Roman artifacts to the fallout of various Trump-related controversies.
16 min read 2,417 words
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Guided By The Beauty Of Our Weapons
Scott Alexander argues that true logical debate, rarely attempted, could be more effective in changing minds than commonly believed, and is necessary for long-term progress in distinguishing truth from falsehood.
40 min read 6,166 words
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Some Groups Of People Who May Not 100% Deserve Our Eternal Scorn
Scott Alexander argues against harshly criticizing various groups often mocked by both left and right, emphasizing nuanced thinking and engagement with evidence.
28 min read 4,186 words
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Another Followup To “Economists On Education”
Scott Alexander's bet about readers misinterpreting an article on economists' views on school vouchers is settled through two surveys, confirming his argument.
5 min read 702 words
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Should Buzzfeed Publish Claims Which Are Explosive If True But Not Yet Proven?
Scott Alexander critiques a Buzzfeed article skeptical of growth mindset research, arguing that while skepticism is warranted, more robust evidence is needed to disprove the theory.
10 min read 1,505 words
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Addendum To “Economists On Education”
Scott Alexander argues that a New York Times article misrepresented economists' views on school vouchers, offering evidence and proposing a bet to prove the article was misleading.
7 min read 1,023 words
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Contra NYT On Economists On Education
Scott Alexander criticizes a New York Times article for misrepresenting economists' views on education vouchers, showing the data actually indicates more support than opposition among economists.
4 min read 517 words
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You Are Still Crying Wolf
Scott Alexander argues that accusations of Trump being an 'openly white supremacist' candidate are exaggerated and harmful, and calls for more measured criticism of Trump's actual flaws.
70 min read 10,723 words
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Some Context For That NYT Sugar Article
Scott criticizes a NYT article on sugar industry influence, arguing that such bias is common across food industries and doesn't justify completely reversing nutritional advice.
6 min read 800 words
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Terrorists Vs. Chairs: An Outlier Story
Scott Alexander critiques the argument that terrorism is less concerning than mundane accidents, showing how excluding 'outlier' events can dangerously skew risk assessments for threats like terrorism and pandemics.
8 min read 1,187 words
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Against Dog Whistle-ism
Scott Alexander criticizes media tendencies to label politicians as racist or sexist based on ambiguous statements, arguing we should focus more on their stated positions and actions.
19 min read 2,832 words
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Links 6/16: Linkandescence
A links post collecting interesting stories from around the web, including scientific studies, historical oddities, media criticism, and current events, with Scott's commentary and analysis.
18 min read 2,667 words
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Before You Get Too Excited About That GitHub Study…
Scott Alexander critiques a study claiming gender bias in GitHub, pointing out methodological flaws and media misrepresentation of its non-peer-reviewed findings.
16 min read 2,394 words
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Lies, Damned Lies, And The Media (Part 6 of ∞)
Scott Alexander dissects and criticizes Breitbart's misleading use of statistics about illegal immigrant crime, emphasizing the need for better understanding and interpretation of data in political debates.
16 min read 2,391 words
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Looking A Gift Horse In The Mouth
Scott Alexander criticizes mainstream media's recent focus on 'coddled' college students in social justice debates, arguing it overlooks more serious issues and reflects a bias towards elite academic perspectives.
12 min read 1,783 words
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A Whiter Shade of Candidate
Scott Alexander debunks the idea that Trump's supporters are disproportionately white, revealing that Bernie Sanders actually has much whiter support, and uses this to challenge common narratives about race and politics.
14 min read 2,079 words