Claims

Factual · Their own work or organisation

“I use my blog as my main method of social networking.”

Tyler Cowen, economist, interview guest · 18 July 2019 · Tyler Cowen on Big Business (EconTalk)

Tyler Cowen uses his blog as his main method of social networking.

Resolved true The record shows it happened or was so.

The second judge would not resolve this claim; the verdict shown is the first judge's.

What would count as true or false

This is a self-report about Cowen's own habits as of 2019-07-18. True: evidence from around that date (his own statements in interviews, profiles, or his blog, or a third-party account) shows that his blog, Marginal Revolution, was his main way of networking socially. For example, he describes the blog as his primary channel, or accounts show he did not rely on other platforms (such as Twitter or Facebook) more than the blog. Mostly true: the blog was clearly central to his networking, but a minor detail is off; for example, another channel was used about as much, though not more. Mixed: evidence shows he used the blog and another channel (such as active Twitter use, conferences, or in-person networking that he described as primary) about equally, with no clear main method. Mostly false: the blog was one of his networking tools, but contemporaneous evidence shows another method was clearly his main one. False: evidence from that period shows the blog was not a significant networking tool for him, or that he himself named a different method as his main one. If the only available evidence is his own statement and nothing contradicts it, it supports true.

Evidence

1. In defense of Facebook - Marginal REVOLUTION Marginal Revolution (Tyler Cowen and Alex Tabarrok blog) · 16 November 2016 Own record

   “Just to be clear, while I have a Facebook profile, I am not a user of the service. The interface confuses me, and I don’t like how strictly information is filtered through the prism of sharing and social connections.”

2. Now online: slide-rule celebrities Los Angeles Times · 23 November 2006

   “But since he and colleague Alex Tabarrok started the blog Marginal Revolution, which has had more than 6 million visitors, Cowen has become something he didn’t even know existed: an economics celebrity.”

3. Patrick Collison has a Few Questions for Tyler (Ep. 21 - Live at Stripe) Conversations with Tyler · 12 April 2017 Own record

   “Well, spend less time on Facebook. Use Google in funny ways.”

4. Tyler Cowen: Which Changes from the Internet Are We Neglecting? - MIT Initiative on the Digital Economy MIT Initiative on the Digital Economy · 9 April 2018

   “No one anticipated that blogs, Twitter, or online chats would become pervasive and valuable communication sources, he said.”

Reasoning

The claim is Cowen's own report of his habits, and the criteria say that his statement, if nothing contradicts it, supports true. The evidence is consistent with it. In a 2016 post on his blog (E1) he wrote that he has a Facebook profile but is "not a user of the service." An independent 2006 Los Angeles Times account (E2) describes Marginal Revolution as the platform that made him widely known. None of the evidence shows that Twitter, Facebook or in-person networking was his main channel around 2019, though E1 and E2 come from well before that date.

Cite this claim

Tyler Cowen, “Tyler Cowen uses his blog as his main method of social networking.” (said 18 July 2019). Verdict: resolved true. Reliability API, claim c_cc67af9dd734, method 0.1.0+c876030c. https://epistacklabs.com/claims/c_cc67af9dd734