Social Epistemology reliability from social media information

Abstract

This article addresses a key issue in social epistemology concerning the trustworthiness of information disseminated via social media. The objective is to explore an evaluative framework for determining trust in social media content through the lens of testimonial epistemology, wherein belief in a speaker’s testimony may serve as epistemic justification, albeit insufficient on its own. The study identifies two distinct yet interrelated types of trust: (1) epistemic trust, and (2) social trust. These two forms are causally interconnected, with social trust significantly influencing individuals' epistemic trust in information. Evaluating epistemic trust in the context of social epistemology requires an ethically grounded form of social trust. Furthermore, the assessment of trustworthiness in information encompasses two key dimensions: (1) from the perspective of the information recipient, and (2) from that of the information disseminator. A social epistemological approach to information evaluation must, therefore, give careful consideration to prevailing social norms and collective beliefs in order to effectively assess the credibility of shared content.