Fake news is a common phenomenon today and such tend to spread fast through social media. In 2016, Facebook announced that they would take action on fake news sites to restrict their ability to influence people the wrong way.
Information that is circulated online may be genuine or complete fiction. The best defense for you as a user is to identify what is fake and what is not. This is how you identify fake news online.
Check source
If you see a story coming from an unfamiliar source, do some digging. Review the web address and establish if there are spelling errors in business names or any extensions that may sound strange. For instance, instead of using the “.com” extension, a site may be using something like “.offer” or “.infonet.”
Whether the publisher or author is familiar or not, don’t consider their professional experience or reputation. Even if you get the story from a close friend, be careful because they may not have established the credibility of the source.
The web design can also reveal a lot about the news. If the site has too many colors, animated gifs with poor use of white space, the chances are that they may be spreading fake news. Legitimate news sites commit time and resources to engage professionals to design their websites. This makes an interesting study and with a big collection of free essay samples on fake news on WritingBros portal, you can easily come up with impressive essays and research papers to impress your teachers. To read essays from professionals for writing and make your education process easier is a wonderful idea.
Evaluate the publisher’s credibility
A site’s popularity may not necessarily warrant legitimate content. Check if the publishing site meets source citation standards. Check the domain name and be wary of unfamiliar names such as “.com.co”. Establish the point of view of the publisher and go through the “about us” section of the website to get more insights into the publisher’s mission.
Evaluating the publisher’s credibility can allow you to know whether news spreading via social media is genuine and thus, you can make informed decisions.
Dishonest people have been spreading fake Covid news causing panic among students planning to study abroad. Sadly, the fake news could be spreading faster than the virus. The bottom line is that you should know the information you need to rely on instead of believing every story circulating online.
Examine evidence
Determine whether the argument in the story is supported by any evidence. There are cases where genuine news sources rely on questionable evidence to support their argument.
A legitimate news story will have relevant and reliable evidence in the form of peer-reviewed research, official statistics, verified documents, and direct quotes from known sources. This could also be in the form of consistent and detailed eye-witness accounts from the people who were on the scene.
Evidence should prove that something happened in a particular way. A fake story may have some facts selected and “twisted” to prove something that does not exist. Your critical thinking could reveal that some evidence is not consistent with what is presented in the story.
Read beyond the provocative headline
In many cases, fake and provocative headlines may provoke attention and create emotional reactions among readers. In this case, you need to read the story in detail before believing and sharing it. Headlines may not always tell the whole story, even in genuine news stories. Fake news can have some suspicious signs in the main text. There have been cases of news sites taking some quotes out of text or giving misleading stories.
Establish whether what is in the main text corresponds to the headline. The people who spread fake news online are aware that many people use social media to get informed. Get to know the depth of the story before sharing it. Otherwise, you may also be blamed for spreading fake news.
Check biases
Confirmation bias causes people to focus on the information they believe to be true. Establish whether there are other stories posted to the website, which could be the source of the story you have seen on your social media page. You may be made to believe that the pope endorsed Donald Trump for the presidency, but is there a story on the “news” site that bears this headline.
When you connect with your peers, social biases may occur and this may guide decisions to select friends who may influence the information you see. By looking at the partisan preferences of friends, people can determine the political leanings of a social media user. Social networks are efficient at spreading information, whether it is accurate or not. The structure of social networks can make you vulnerable to disinformation.
Conclusion
Social media makes fake news spread fast. You don’t need to trust any information you see online, but you can evaluate it first. Take time to determine the source of information and whether the author is credible. Evaluate the evidence supporting the story and dig deeper into the story instead of relying on the headline. Most importantly, check if any social biases may influence the information you access online.
