As an archaeologist, it is their duty to help provide and educate the world about its past. The world learns from its past mistakes and from each other culturally and physically. We can gage if something is a good idea by going back into the past and reviewing another time where a similar idea was presented and what the outcome of that idea was. I believe that it is the duty of an archaeologist and the field to refute claims made by psuedoarchaeologists. It would be disastrous if someone was to go back into the past to compare an idea that might be used in the future and find articles, paperwork and published items on false ideas. This not only harms the future generations of learners but current ones as well. It also gives the public a skewed view of the archaeology field. Even now talking to people, they view it as a fantasized career that is full of adventure and mythology which isn’t correct. I believe this is because of people like Erik Von Daniken and other psuedoarchaeologists that have put their crazy ideas out into the world. Another hard point that is a must for debunking pseudoarchaeology is the credibility of a find. If a professional archaeologist doesn’t argue against a faux pas then it leads to the idea that anyone can find something old and dirty and call it a great discovery.
To combat psuedoarchaeology, I think it is important for professionals to spread the idea of context and continue with the thought that anything you see on TV or the internet is to be taken with a grain of salt. So many people today choose watching TV or going straight to the internet to find their information over books, that they have forgotten that these formats are ever-changing. Anyone can put anything on a show or on the internet and say they are a credible source. Whereas publishing a book, article or something in a written format it must be read, proofread, sent through numerous checkpoints before being approved for publishing. While things that aren’t fiction still get through to being published it is a smaller, limited and more controlled amount than that to the internet or TV. Another way to help combat the amount of fiction in the archaeology field of the digital world is to express and teach what a credible source is. Many people don’t know this or have never been upheld to use ‘real’ sources like the ones we are required to use in this class. It is a tool that has never been fully expressed because information on search engines is so readily available and easy people choose the first five links that pop up. Not bothering to look to see if it says .org, .gov, etc…
I agree with your statement that it is an archaeologist’s duty to provide and educate the public. As well as, your statement that it is the responsibility of archaeologist’s to combat pseudoarchaeological claims. Overall, I thought your post was thoughtful and made a lot of great points! We made similar claims regarding the levels of education society has on the topic of archaeology. You made the point that people often believe archaeology is a fantastical career. That is an extremely important topic to bring up, because shows such as Ancient Aliens and America Unearthed will often go along with this ideology (which, as I stated in my post, people will often watch these shows, and wholeheartedly believe what they are being told). Like you said, a great way to combat pseudoarchaeology is to not believe everything you see on television. I love that you brought up peer-review, because it is the most important part of any research being done. As you stated, a published research article would have gone through extensive scrutiny. This gives the reader, or fellow researcher, a sense of comfort when analyzing the study. You state that fewer amount of peer-reviewed articles are published, and I agree; I think more people should keep this statement in mind when researching on a pseudoarchaeological topic, because so many people will spend limited time analyzing websites or shows. This might cause them to overlook major red flags when it comes to a credible source. It is startling to me that most people will read, and believe, non-credible sources.
This post does a great job focusing on the potential danger that could stem from skewed interpretations of the past. I agree that pseudoarchaeology and its supporters are at fault for how the public has come to view the field of archaeology as a fantasy-fulfilling profession full of incredible discoveries and ancient secrets. I also would posit that these concepts are also used by companies because they are easily marketable and lead to monetary gains when displayed in media such as movies and television shows.
I found that argument that professionals in the archaeological community should promote written works of information to be well thought out. With television, movies, and streaming services constantly tailoring their image to match the request of the viewing public, print media remains one of the most rigorously reviewed form of information distribution left. I agree that having professionals promoting these peer-reviewed works to public audience is an excellent tool in combating the overwhelming tide of pseudoarchaeological narratives being presented in the modern era. Without certified professionals to contradict these stories the individuals spreading them could easily manipulate their credentials in order to make themselves appear as credible references for their ideas. The ultimate issue boils down to the willingness of the average viewer to question and fact-check the information presented to them. Often times the public is presented with one perspective, whether correct or incorrect, and this is the version of events that they are most likely to believe even when presented with significant evidence to the contrary. Every person has a responsibility to double check the information given to them against multiple sources in order to make sure that they have a complete view of events.