![\"Fact](\"https:\/\/fm.hunter.cuny.edu\/journalism\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/FactCheckingPoster.png\")
<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nWashington Post reporter Salvador Rizzo is coming to Hunter to talk about his career as a fact-checker, as well as his book, \u201cDonald Trump and His Assault on Truth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I got a chance to catch up with him before his visit. Here\u2019s some excerpts from our conversation:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Q: As a reporter and fact-checker, you\u2019ve been on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic. How has your line of work affected your personal views on the pandemic?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n A: <\/strong>First of all, that\u2019s a really great question. This pandemic is not over. We just passed six million deaths, globally. It\u2019s impossible for people to fathom six million people, it\u2019s too big of a number.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But because we\u2019re seeing mask mandates being dropped and returning to \u201cnormal,\u201d there\u2019s a sense that it\u2019s all over and we can return to how we were pre-pandemic. People are going to carry on with their daily lives as they always have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But there needs to be a balance. Check your local county numbers, and make decisions, like taking your mask off or leaving it on, according to them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q: On a daily basis, you deal with a lot of people who have no idea what they\u2019re talking about. How do you deal with that?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n A: <\/strong>Even though there are tons of people who don\u2019t know what they\u2019re talking about, the best part is that there are lots of people who do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The best skill I\u2019ve been able to learn as a fact checker is seeking out these knowledgeable experts who are able to debunk misinformation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q: Do you think there\u2019s a remedy to the pandemic of misinformation?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n A: <\/strong>Yes. People are becoming more aware of falsehoods and misinformation and doing more to combat it, especially on Facebook.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There\u2019s a group of Facebook moms, Vaccine Talk<\/a>, that have started a forum for those seeking answers, to create a healthy discussion around vaccines, and provide resources for skeptics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So we can see there\u2019s a hunger to fight against misinformation and conspiracies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Q: When talking about misinformation on the internet, something I often notice is non-English speakers being left out of the conversation. In my experience, lots of immigrant communities on apps like Whatsapp and Facebook may be more prone to believe misinformation. Do you feel enough is being done to include them in the picture?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n A: <\/strong>You know, in Florida during the 2020 election, the Trump campaign put out ads, in both Spanish and English, comparing Biden to socialist leaders like Hugo Ch\u00e1vez and Fidel Castro.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s simply not true. I mean, history should be open to interpretation, but it still needs to have meaning. It can\u2019t mean nothing. They were trying to scare the Venezuelan and Cuban diaspora.<\/p>\n\n\n\n