Fake news: America has dumbed down

Re: “For Sedro Wooley family, fake news item opens wound” (TNT 12/19).

It’s been observed that someone who won’t read a newspaper is a fool. But a person who believes everything in the paper merely because it’s there also qualifies.

Along with responsible newspapers, we need responsible readers to counteract the effects of fake news stories.

A professor from the University of Oregon wrote a book about “the dumbing down” of America. Perhaps the fact that fake news is so prevalent proves his point.

This story was originally published December 28, 2016 at 4:54 PM with the headline "Fake news: America has dumbed down."