SAN LORENZO RUIZ SEMINARY 1

TRUTH, MISINFORMATION, AND THE LOGIC OF LANGUAGE

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A Final Paper
Presented to the Academic Office of Philosophy
San Lorenzo Ruiz Seminary

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In Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements of the Subject
Seminar on Contemporary Philosophy
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By
MARC DAVE B. ARON
25 February 2026
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Truth
Reflecting on the truth is an important contemplation of a person to look back

at the past on how the mind and heart were trained to learn, to stand up and speak

according to the truth in the midst of fake news. What really is the truth? The truth

always conforms to what is in reality, it is visible and perceivable in contrast to falsity

or misinformation. It does not change; rather, it shows what the truth of a thing or

event is. That is why it is said that if the statement is true, it corresponds to the facts in

the world. Evidence can be seen in things that work in real life in a practical manner.

For an instance, like studying being a stepping stone toward your dream. You studied,

and you proved that you learned something and eventually used it; you can say that

studying is worth risking for by giving all your efforts and sacrifices, even with all the

struggles you went through, and it tells the truth that it does not only remain in a word

but also happens in action or in real life. The existence of what is in the mind is not yet

the truth but if it happens in the real world, where a person is capable of touching or

using it. Therefore, we can say that the truth only confirms what is in reality and is not

merely a creation of the mind.

Misinformation
The world is constantly changing and we cannot deny the fact that the truth

nowadays is being overshadowed by false information. Misinformation is incorrect or

inaccurate information that we receive from others unintentionally. Although humans

are not perfect in understanding the true situation of life, mistakes are a normal human

process when doing something, especially when it is new to them or not in their state
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of mind. A person reaches a point where they become unconscious of what they did or

said, and only then do they realize that what they uttered led to misinformation. It is

unintentional but can bring a person to a wrong perspective or understanding of the

information received. And now, we can notice the growth of misinformation in the

digital world. As Misinformation or the so-called fake news continuous to be rapidly

distributed on the internet which plays a decisive role in shaping public perception.

Our reality has become increasingly shape by false information that forms the minds

and hearts of the people into a new perspective and understanding of identifying the

truth. There are two types of false information, whether it is intended or not. This is the

difference between the two: misinformation, as mentioned, is information that is

unintentionally spread, which is why it becomes false, and the other one is

disinformation – this is deliberate, meaning there is an intention to harm or deceive

others, which can affect their mind which can also be a cause of a person's traumatic

experience. However, the times are too deceitful nowadays. It has become unclear for

us to determine what is true because even if something is wrong, if we think it is right,

it becomes right. We are deceived by things in the world that give us temporary

happiness or comfort, where in fact we do not know whether it will benefit us in the

long term.

What runs through our mind often becomes the result of our actions, because

our mind dictates to a person how to act. it emphasizes how the power of thought

shapes our lives and actions. If a person only acts on impulse based on their feelings,

this is what can lead them to possible pleasure or danger. Just like the hot topics on

social media today, if there is no basis or sufficient evidence, it can lead to

misinterpretation of information. A person might give their wrong judgment based on

what they heard or saw on the screen without enough information on whether it is true

or just a deception by others to take advantage of people. The excess of information is

close to having no information at all Especially if the information you gather is just

others' own interpretations, it also becomes nonsense if there is no sufficient evidence

and only serves to confuse the mind, as true information looks exactly like untrue,

biased, and satirical information. It is difficult to understand and determine the truth,

especially when we are in an era of fake news. There are times that we need to

scrutinize, to go beyond, because people have different kinds of methods and are not

only focused on the text, idea, or information being given, since the true meaning of

the message being conveyed may only be seen behind it. If a person’s interpretation is

wrong based on what they saw and was not applied with philosophy such as

hermeneutics, how it circulates the idea based on your understanding? That is very

difficult and obscure to understand. Therefore, it is really important to first know its

individual parts, how people deliver the information based on his or her style. If you

follow him and gradually grasp what he is pointing out, you will be able to understand

the whole truth that the person is indicating. That is why it is difficult for us to just

accept information without really checking it critically and yet easy to judge without

knowing the full story of a person. So today, we are greatly challenged by modern

times, not only in how we find information, but also with the challenge of how humans

recognize the truth amid the mixed styles and forms of language. They may appear

similar, so it is very important to inquire and be critical when reading to identify the

sources of issues in understanding the people we are facing, the news we receive, or
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read. Gathering information only becomes chaotic if it is excessive because the truth

may not be immediately identified. That is why it is important not just to keep

gathering information, but also to think about whether all the gathered information is

really correct, particularly in relation to the given issue or problem.

The media landscape has certainly been fundamentally changed by the Internet

and social media, but historians have also argued that although gossip is a permanent

and widespread feature of social exchanges online, its transmission and diffusion still

retain the same core characteristics as pre-Internet, pre-telecommunications, prewriting

press.1 It means that the spread of misinformation does not only happen on social

media, but also in gossip, which is actually the earliest human activity to spread false

information, and to this day, it remains a cause of strong envy, jealousy, anger, or any

emotional state that leads to such issues, which are often unverified as to whether they

are true or not. So, we come to the question, 'Why is misinformation a problem?' This

is the reason why people get confused and misunderstand things, forming incorrect

understanding, which leads people to make judgments. It creates a concept in a

person's mind that shouldn't exist. This is why gossip exists, because that's where it

started. Many suffer from false assumptions, but through assuming, people get the

opportunity to think and discover the truth.

Logic of Language

The logic of language refers to how it serves as a guide for proper

understanding, thinking, and human conversation. If it is constantly used by people

1
Zoë Adams, Magda Osman, Christos Bechlivanidis, and Björn Meder, “(Why) Is Misinformation a
Problem?” Perspectives on Psychological Science 18, no. 6 (2023): 1446.
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before exchanging words with others, it would be a sufficient basis to maintain order

among individuals from the very beginning, but because people have their own

decisions, this guide is often disregarded and what people should be mindful of is

being neglected.