Students pack new UW class on 'B.S.'

SEATTLE -- A new course at the University of Washington is teaching students how to check if something is real, or if it’s fake.

It’s called “Calling BS in the Age of Big Data,” and it’s getting a lot of attention.

Q13 stopped by the class Wednesday and it was standing room only.  The class reached its full capacity just one minute after it opened up for enrollment.



From ‘fake news’ to just plain old bad information, the class looks to teach students how to figure out if things are fact or fiction.

But they also hope, what students learn here will have a bigger effect.

“People contribute to what’s out there on social media, and we figured if we can help people not pass on incorrect information, we could help clean up the social media environment, if you will,” says Carl Bergstrom, one of the professors of the class.

The professors behind the class plan to expand it to offering a 3-credit version of the class in the fall, and make the lectures publicly available on YouTube.