All you have to do is ask

I once got suckered by a fake website.  The content made me angry - probably the exact intent of the website's creator - so I posted about it on Facebook.  Someone then pointed out to me, gently and tactfully, that the website wasn't real. 

Once I'd stopped feeling like a dick, I thought about why I'd been taken in.  It was an issue I cared deeply about.  The website wasn't completely realistic-looking, but it wasn't egregiously fake either.  I'd already had a particular view, and my brain worked to confirm rather than challenge it - taking a bypass in the process.  In short, I'd been human. 

We live in times that ask us to process a bunch of information.  That's hard in itself.  It's harder when you don't know much about the source of the information, or don't trust it - especially if you've got real reasons for your distrust.  

Even though it shouldn't be, government information can be hard to decipher - and I say this with affection, as someone who spent years writing it.  Looking back, I guess I was just trying to maximise a clear pathway to identifying key objectives so I could progress the issues in a timely manner going forward. 

I'm a researcher, so I'm good at understanding some kinds of information, including government information.  But I can't figure out the rules of rugby, follow the instructions to set up a Zoom meeting, or fathom how double lane roundabouts work.  When you're not familiar with it, any information can be hard to process.  Again, that's just being human.

From time to time, I see people posting information that purports to be from the government, but I can tell it's false, out of context, or sometimes just a mistake.  You won't be surprised to learn that information is often about COVID.  I can see when people post that their questions are genuine, and so is their concern. 

I've learned a few tricks about processing information from my time as a public servant. 

• Government agencies use very uniform brands deliberately, to avoid confusion.  If information is recent, but it doesn't use the same font and colours and style you see on the agency website, it's probably dodgy. 
• If a quote sounds random or weird, you probably don't have the full picture.  When complex issues are at stake, that full picture is critical.  Data is the trickiest: sometimes it's not telling the story it appears to, and it needs someone who knows the issues to explain it.  
• Mistakes happen.  They shouldn't, but they do.  Someone is busy or tired or just does something silly.  Incorrect information goes out to the public.  When that happens, it's possible you'll see the information drop away for a bit.  It's almost certainly nothing sinister.  Some flustered bureaucrat is probably just trying to fix it and get home at a reasonable hour to their kids.

Both cock-ups and conspiracies exist, but cock-ups are much more common, simply because they're way easier to pull off.

And the great thing is, you don't have to take my word for any of this.

You might not feel like it, but government agencies are accountable to you - not just in some theoretical way, but very directly.  Under the Official Information Act (OIA), you can ask them for any information they hold, and except in some circumstances, they have to give it to you.

Making an OIA request isn't fancy or technical.  There's no right or wrong way.  You don’t have to refer to the Act, or even ask for a particular document.  You can literally just email or ring and say, "I saw this thing on your website and it looked hinky.  Can you give me background information explaining it?".

Democracy isn't something that government just hands to us.  It's a two way street, with citizens also playing a part - including by making sure the information we act on is up to scratch.  Luckily, all we need to do is ask.

Being human means getting it wrong, but also being able to fix it.  And we're all human - believe it or not, even the government.