How to Tell What’s Real Online

In a world overflowing with opinions, clips, conspiracies, and AI-generated answers, how do you know what’s actually true? Neil deGrasse Tyson breaks down his personal checklist for navigating the modern information landscape—yellow flags, red flags, and why evidence-based thinking matters more than ever. From scientific claims and podcasts to clipped videos and industry commentary, Neil shows you how to separate signal from noise and think like a scientist in the digital age. How do you tell what’s real? Neil deGrasse Tyson breaks down how to tell which sources are trustworthy and which yellow flags to look out for. In an age of so much information, how do you parse what’s real and what’s misinformation? 00:00 - What to Trust 00:45 - AI for Research 01:50 - The Influence of Industry 04:15 - Telling You How You Should Feel 5:34 - Content Lifted From Its Source 7:00 - Further Research 9:00 - Conspiracy Theories 10:21 - Is “Mainstream” a Bad Word? 11:18 - Indicting Demographics 13:15 - Laws of Physics, Inventions, & Aliens Check out our second channel, @StarTalkPlus Get the NEW StarTalk book, 'To Infinity and Beyond: A Journey of Cosmic Discovery' on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3PL0NFn Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/startalkradio FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE to StarTalk: Twitter: http://twitter.com/startalkradio Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StarTalk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/startalk About StarTalk: Science meets pop culture on StarTalk! Astrophysicist & Hayden Planetarium director Neil deGrasse Tyson, his comic co-hosts, guest celebrities & scientists discuss astronomy, physics, and everything else about life in the universe. Keep Looking Up! #StarTalk #NeildeGrasseTyson