Our Vision

Our goal is to introduce the fake statistics curriculum to as many classrooms as possible.

The Fake Statistics Initiative is an effort to

1) show students and the public how numbers and graphics are inadvertently or purposefully misused to influence our decision making.

2) present methods to identify and combat fake statistics using what we call a  “5W Toolkit”.

We do not claim to have a cure. We cannot change how the brain fundamentally operates. However, we believe that effective training, especially at a younger age, can make a difference in teaching the human mind to recognize certain patterns and techniques.

The intention to misinform, manipulate or deceive is as old as mankind. Ancient Greeks or WWII armies, for instance, used crafty methods to spread false information to destabilize their opponent. Today is no exception: false claims in political campaigns, product advertisements, news headlines, etc. are omnipresent. The intention to sway or deceive is here to stay. With modern technologies, misinformation spreads very rapidly and is extremely difficult to stop or correct. Nowadays, there are a number of efforts to raise awareness about phenomena such as fake news, misinformation and the like. We applaud these initiatives.

We decided to launch our own initiative that contributes to these efforts. It focuses on the types of manipulation that involve numbers and the methods used to present, distort, or misuse them. As professionals who work with numbers on a daily basis, we know how easy it is to fall into the “numbers don’t lie” trap. We know that this is simply not true because the presentation methods do. 

Please, join us in raising awareness by taking our quiz, reading our website or giving us feedback on how we can further advance the goals of this initiative. Our goal is to introduce the ‘fake statistics curriculum’ to as many classrooms as possible. Thank you.