The Fallibility of Memory

Since we have talked about history and memory in class, thought possibly this would be of interest. The National Council on Public History posted it, by the way: Public History News Update – February 11, 2015

The fallibility of memories. In light of the recent controversy surrounding news anchor Brian Williams, this article from the New York Times reminds us how slippery and fuzzy the human memory can be. http://nyti.ms/1uFoYan (And didn’t we talk about this memory thing before? Why, yes we did, in December. http://nyti.ms/1CG2lWx )

Was Brian Williams a victim of False memory? By Tara Parker Hope
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/02/09/was-brian-williams-a-victim-of-false-memory/?_r=0

2 thoughts on “The Fallibility of Memory”

  1. I think memory is like eyewitness accounts … sometimes accurate sometimes not. Ever have the experience of “remembering” being at an event, say a relative’s wedding and joining a conversation years later about the wedding, only to discover that you couldn’t have been there because on that date you were categorically elsewhere. You simply mixed up your memories, or responded to stimuli that induced you to feel and think in a way that triggers those kind of memories.

  2. Or sometimes, maybe no matter how rich and famous you are, your insecurities become evident in your lies!

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