Asheley Landrum, Assistant Professor, Science Communication, Texas Tech University, came into the news owing to her study on how cultural values influence our comprehension of science. In recent time, she has been investigating the growth of flat Earth theory. To a great extent, more individuals than ever are found to be trusting in a flat Earth. Google searches for “flat earth” have increased massively over the period of past 5 Years. At the same time, the flat Earth conventions have started popping up all over the world. That is where Landrum aimed at her research.
In this research, Landrum studied about 30 individuals who attended one flat Earth convention. She observed that all but one turn into flat Earthers following watching videos on YouTube. This research is presented at an event organized by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
On a similar note, YouTube and Facebook came into the news as they revealed the removal of content that promotes illegitimate animal blood sports after an inquiry by the BBC’s Countryfile program. However, both websites still host users featuring graphic photos and videos showing prohibited cockfighting and hare coursing happening in the U.K. Facebook removed one user and proclaimed that the content must respect regional laws.
YouTube proclaimed that it had taken out all material emphasized by the BBC that breached its policy guidelines. However, the majority of the material noticed on both sites, in both public and private user groups, remains online. Cockfighting was made against the law in the 19th Century. Geoff Edmond, Co-ordinator, National Wildlife, RSPCA, saw the online material exposed by Countryfile. He proclaimed that it is down to these social media firms to take their responsibility. Currently, the agency is still discussing with these companies.