You cannot build a better world on the foundation of mistruths: George RR Martin

"We should do better, we can do better. We have to do better," he stated

"A novelist's truth and a journalist's truth are two different things," he said.

Speaking at Northwestern Graduation, author George RR Martin recollected his own time at his graduation. He spoke about his friends, the chess team he captained, and the professors who left a profound impact on his life. “There may have been dances and parties but the protests were more visible,” he said recounting his time in college.

He also spoke about the time he had started writing and sold a dozen stories. Even though he did not get a job reporting what was happening, he had a career writing about “aliens, dragons, and vampires”. “I can almost picture my old professors shaking their heads and wondering how I went on,” the Game of Thrones author said.

He went on to talk about writing and said, “a novelist’s truth and a journalist’s truth are two different things.” Having said that he spoke at length on the way news at large is being corrupted. “Broadcast news has become hopelessly politicised. Network news division, once considered a public trust, have been absorbed in the entertainment division,” he stated.

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He continued, “We seem to be living in the age of a big lie.” He added wryly that though he has written on aliens and vampires, “but none half so unlikely as the sinister global conspiracies that a large portion of the population seem to believe are real.” “These days lies travel with the speed of light,” the author said and then said in conclusion, “We should do better, we can do better. We have to do better. If we ever hope to build a better world, you cannot build on the foundation of mistruths.”

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