LAUSR

False beliefs—those at odds with established bodies of evidence—have a number of origins, including the internet or personal experience. Such beliefs can be held by clinicians as well as patients; in the context of health care, they deserve clinical and ethical attention mainly because they can cause harm. The current preponderance of fake news, persistence of social media as a vehicle to disseminate it, and increasing abundance and easy availability of information—including health-related information— suggest the clinical and ethical importance of focusing on the role of perspective. According to which criteria ought we to evaluate a perspective and regard it as right or wrong? What makes a health care decision a “best” decision? Should personal and professional experiences have authority in decision making even if they are not consistent with clinical practice standards and the body of evidence that supports them? These questions will be explored from clinical, ethical, legal, and cultural perspectives in this issue of the AMA Journal of Ethics.