Fake News as a Flaw in Journalism

Morgan Walker, Saint Marys College of California

April 2017

Abstract

This article was written with the intention of uncovering information regarding the
existence and implications of fake news; as it is embedded into technology through
journalism, social media and many other forms of news output. Ultimately, the rise of
awareness towards the fake news community grew substantially following the 2017
United States Presidential Election. In this article, we discuss the definition of fake
news, address its presence in the world of politics, social media and journalism, and
draw from interviews with professional(s) in the field, including Timothy J. O'Rourke
with the San Francisco Chronicle. By using Charles Bazermans analysis of the rhetorical
situation, genre and discourse, I ultimately categorize the components of fake news, and
discuss the many ways in which this new genre of media is influencing public perception
of news.

Introduction
As society searches for accurate and reliable news outlets on a day-to-day basis,
fake news exists as a contagion to such newsf media. Today, the term fake news has
been coined to describe inaccurate information that is believed or adopted by the
general public. This imperfect reality can be extremely damaging if accepted and spread
by readers. Overall, fake news influences the media, journalism and the peoples perception of
news. While previous research has been conducted in order to analyze the existence and
importance of such news, little has been done with the intention of eradicating this new genre of
news.
While conducting my research, I used Charles Bazermans article What Writing
Does and How it Does It, as an outline in order to understand fake news as a genre. By
using Bazermans definitions of social fact, speech act and genre, I was able to
understand the broad existence of fake news in the media as categorized by the
previously stated terms. In order for readers to accurately understand and identify fake
news, they will need to know Bazermans terms, including:
Social fact: facts that the public believe to be true, and therefore
affect how a situation is defined (312)
Genre: Recognizable, self-reinforcing forms of communication (316)
Speech Act: The idea that words do things, instead of just say
things; all utterances are speech acts (313)
By adopting these terms, I looked at fake news through the lens of these theories. For
example, I dissected articles by identifying its speech acts. This was performed in an
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effort to determine if the article was credible, or if its information was merely supported
by social fact.
Thus, my research includes an extensive analysis of the relationships between
fake news and technology, politics, social media and journalism. By analyzing several
articles, and the 2016 presidential election, I was able to identify that versions of fake
news have always existed, and is not limited to the media.
Beginning my research, I analyzed news articles containing the words fake
news. While many articles exist pertaining to the subject, few analyzd the existence,
relevance, or implications of fake news in regards to society; and if they did, few were
written by credible writers or released by credible publications; thus, I was extremely
aware of the lack of conversation regarding fake news as a discourse. Overall, the PEW
Research Center was the only source I was able to find that provided useful background
information written about the existence of fake news over time.

Fake News & Technology

While it is true that fake news is spread through many sources, technology seems
to be the most widely used outlet. Today, Americans rely heavily on technology as their
premium source for information. The rise of technology is perhaps most clearly seen in
the popularity of smartphones, as they have evolved into a swiss army knife of
technological progression in regards to societal dependency. It is easily proven that
smartphones, tablets and other electronics provide humanity with readily available
access to unlimited information, instant communication and endless entertainment.
However, it is imperative not to overlook our privileged accessibility to knowledge
provided through the click of a mouse, or touch of a button. While the worldwide
obsession with social media and advanced technology is a paramount component of
human lifestyle, it is the information provided by, and through these devices that proves
to be the most important. Therefore, protection of this information is vital.
Citizens currently depend on the accessibility of information found in categories
such as entertainment, politics, national events and foreign affairs. In the past, the
definition and question of what composed news was called into question, and analyzed
substantially. As a result, now-famous academic articles, such as What is News,
written by Neil Postman and Steve Powers, have been published. Articles like Postman
and Powers help to shape and dissect the role of news and journalism. While
researchers have studied the many elements of journalism and the importance of media,
seldom has the genre of fake news been studied, or questioned as a serious concern.
Fake news, as written about in this article, is any creation or distribution of news media
that is knowingly false or inaccurate. Ultimately, this newly-named genre of news is
changing the mold of journalism and media, as readers are beginning to question the
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reliability of educated journalists, well-established news networks and most

importantly, news in general as a trustworthy source of information.
According to the Pew Research Center, in
2015, 92% of adults in the United States owned a
phone, and 48% owned a tablet or computer.
Further dissecting that number, 84% of
Americans are able to access and use the
internet. If we closely analyze this number, we
are able to categorize internet usage by age:
(18-29), (30-49), (50-64) and (65^) (Perrin,
Duggan, Pew Research Center). This means that
anyone from these ages and more had access to
the internet, and access to create, share, post
and ultimately believe fake news. 1

To further prove these claims, it is imperative

that readers understand the gravity behind such
a crucial issue such as fake news and its
contaminating presence in the news realm. According to Business Insider, San
Francisco, California was named the epicenter of all things technological (Weller).
Because of my fascination with this information, I was able to interview Timothy J.
ORouke, Assistant Managing Editor for the San Francisco Chronicle, and Executive
Producer of The Chronicle's website, about his stance on the loitering presence of fake
news in the media. According to ORouke, fake news can be described as a phenomenon
allowing people to publish misleading information to promote personal gain, as social
media is a non-regulated space. ORouke called this circumstance reckless, and
described publication as a competition amongst writers. When asked about the origin of
fake news, ORouke 2 described this competition in more detail, emphasizing that rushed
writers are more likely to twist the truth to make their story sound more interesting, or
to get their writing out first. In order to combat the generation of fake news, ORouke
states, I see it everyday online--they (writers) twist the truth, and sometimes lie. It
hurts everybody, and urges writers to stick to the standard.

1
Cellphones, Computers Are the Most Commonly Owned Devices. A mericans Internet Access:
2000-2015. Perrin, Andrew, and Maeve Duggan. Americans Internet Access: 2000-2015. Pew Research
Center, 2015. Accessed 3 May 2017.
2
Timothy J. O'Rourke is an assistant managing editor with The San Francisco Chronicle and the executive producer of
SFChronicle.com. He supervises the newsroom's online staff, oversees digital content, and directs all branded social media
activity. Previously, ORourke was The Chronicles senior news editor, responsible for the print front page and news operations.
He has also served as the night breaking news editor and the department leader for the copy and wire desks. He developed the
yearlong Chronicle Covers front-page archive project and he still gets to write the occasional craft beer story for the Food
department (The San Francisco Chronicle).
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Concluding our interview, O'Rourke stated that the average reader doesn't know
the difference between real and fake news, and agreed that fake news greatly impacted
the 2017 presidential election. Finally, when asked about the extreme possibility that
Americans rights to freedom of speech and press be revoked if fake news spirals out of
control, ORouke was rather optimistic. He explains that he does not think that these
freedoms are in immediate danger, but stated, Those rights are always in jeopardy, we
fight for that everyday. Ultimately, ORouke believes social media users and news
viewers can help fight fake news by creating platforms, spreading the word and being
optimistic.

Fake News & Donald Trump

While inaccurate news has always existed within the realm of journalism, the
term fake news has not. Additionally, the term was perhaps coined by the recently
inaugurated President of the United States, Donald Trump, as it was given life during
the billionaires decision to involve himself within the world of politics. However, it is
unclear if this genre of fake news is a newly created sub-category of rumor media, or
was merely unrecognized in past research. Ultimately, most readers are unaware of the
ways in which Journalism is--and will--struggle, as they are unaware that this discourse
even exists. Thus, it is evident that a lack of attention and speculation is present, as fake
news has not yet been declared a detriment to journalism, publically established or
unanimously realized.
While fake news may not be recognized by the immediate public, it has been well
acquainted in the political realm. For example, Former President Barack Obama was
quoted stating, Its a media ecosystem where everything is true and nothing is true," in
a post-election interview with the New Yorker (Holan). This quote addressed the
revolution of fake news in the early days of the 2016 Presidential Election. And, while
looking at fake news through a political lens, it quickly dispersed throughout all forms of
social media. When Donald Trump first announced his run for presidency, his campaign
was questioned to be a publicity stunt, most-likely inferred because of his lack of
political experience and broad campaign slogan, Make America Areat Again. However,
while Trump did have experience flirting with the idea of candidacy, including 1987,
1999, 2004, 2008 and most recently in 2011, he did not have experience in presidency
(Diamond, CNN).
Thus, It was not unreasonable for Americans to roll their eyes at the idea of
Trump actually running, let alone winning. Because Trumps campaign was originally
seen as comical and at times satirical, false information was immediately popularized
through negative forms of media outlets, including: sarcastic remarks, opinionated
status updates, unrealistic predictions, left-wing horror, and humor. As Americans
initially made light of Donald Trumps immersion into politics, his popularity increased
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as he continuously labeled the media as fake. At the Conservative Political Action

Conference, Trump was even quoted stating, "A few days ago I called the fake news the
enemy of the people, and they are they are the enemy of the people (Jackson , USA).
However, it is ironic that the very news Trump despises, could be the very reason he was
able to win the election. Although we are unable to exactly specify why or how his
popularity increased, it may be linked to a variety of approval methods, including: his
excessive Twitter presence, blatant3 disregard for mannerisms during interviews,
unusual debates and speeches, or perhaps increased publicity as Americans reacted to
his peculiar media presence.
In the end, Donald Trumps campaign was unlike anything Americans had ever
seen, as he did not polish himself around the camera, or seek approval in the way other
Presidential candidates always did. Instead, Trump spoke with brutal honesty, which
often led to contradiction to previous claims, racist and sexist remarks, or objectification
of women. When stepping away from Trumps political platform, and looking only at his
media presence (words spoken in interviews, social media accounts, etc.,) his success
seems nearly impossible, as overall polling rates during his campaign did not indicate
success for the Republican Party (Reilly). On a more progressive note, Trumps overall
performance shattered Americans mold of how a presidential candidate should act, look
and speak. The president, breaking conventional public awareness and respect, often
referred to his competitors as Lying Ted(Cruz), Lightweight Jeb(Bush), and Crooked
Hillary(Clinton). And as if by magic, Trumps approach worked. In the end, Americans
played into Trumps inexperienced and hungry hands, as they were consumed by the
gossip and drama that shadowed Trumps undying shock factor. Journalists, however,
were unimpressed.

Overall, the medias

inability to recognize
Trump as a serious
candidate running for
office signified the
beginning of a very
rocky relationship
between President
Trump and the Media;
an affair that will, in
fact, change the way
society views news

3
Trumps Followers. Haner, Josh. The Data Behind Trumps Twitter Takeover. Politico Magazine
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media entirely. By recalling Donald Trumps unpredictable journey to Presidency, it

becomes easier for readers to understand how the impact of fake news not only
influences social media users, but can also affect different aspect of media--including
highly regarded political affairs such as the Presidency.

Fake News & The Media

From 2010 to 2015 the Pew Research Center, a non-profit website dedicated to
researching Journalism and Media, studied the rise of technological advancement and
its integration into society. While the Pew Research Center provides readers with helpful
statistics in reference to a broad array of media-related topics, the patterns of
journalism and the transformation of news has yet to be thoroughly examined.
Additionally, on January 31, 2017, The Columbia Journalism Review featured writer
Jacob L. Nelsons article titled Is Fake News a Problem?. In Nelsons analysis, he
highlights the importance of understanding fake news, stating, What's been missing
from the conversation is a calculated look at fake newss reach. We don't know much
about the fake news audience, period. This statement provides further proof that the
fake news genre is newly realized; thus, it is imperative that we become learned in this
field of study.
Today, popular media applications--such as Facebook, with 829 million users
daily, Twitter with 43.4m tweets daily, and Snapchat with 158 million users--are not
only used as a source of entertainment, but provide users of all ages access to a direct
outlet of information (Carson, Edwards, Business Insider). While earning such high user
statistics, information created and distributed through social media applications is likely
to be altered in some way. Ultimately, as more and more users misinterpret fake news as
real, so too does the application itself. Thus, information portrayed through applications
such as Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat expand into a broad array of news and
entertainment subjects, including: articles from Cosmopolitan Magazine, Hollywood
fashion critique, random fun-facts and political highlights (Snapchat Discover).
Sadly, it is not uncommon for internet users to believe everything they read on
media outlets--such as those mentioned above; as it is rare for information found on
social, or news media sites, to be accurate; or even true. This is due to the fact that much
of the information found was written by other uninformed users. Ultimately, this creates
a hidden discourse in the world of media, as the existence of fake news greatly
misinforms the public, thus rendering them as inept and unable to decipher true from
false. Reversely, if fake news continues to populate media, it will be the public who
perceives journalism and news media as unimportant and irrelevant.
According to a new survey by Pew Research Center, most Americans
suspect that made-up news is having an impact. About two-in-three U.S.
adults (64%) say fabricated news stories cause a great deal of confusion
 Walker- 6

about the basic facts of current issues and events. This sense is shared
widely across incomes, education levels, partisan affiliations and most
other demographic characteristics. These results come from a survey of 1,002
U.S. adults conducted from Dec. 1 to 4,
2016(Barthel, Mitchell, and Holcomb,
The Pew Research Center).
This exposure and acceptance of fake
news is not surprising, as false information
is continually sourced by media outlets, and
used as clickbait. In simpler terms, this is a
way for applications of media to lure
internet users into visiting their website,
reading their texts and coming back for
more. This is usually achieved by twisting
the truth in order to provide a more
interesting story. Thus, it is imperative that
research is further conducted determining
the presence, frequency, detectability and
future impact of false news.4
Fake News and Journalism:
While it may seem to millennials that social media is limited to apps such as
twitter, facebook or snapchat, news media is spread across all forms of social media.
While people of all ages find their news on social applications, The American Press
Institute reported that 61% were shown finding news through print newspaper or
magazines. While it is true that fake news can appear anywhere, it is less likely to be
published in print newspaper publications. However, news satire and political,
emotional and religious biases exist in the foundations of every publication. And, while
fake news is seen on a daily basis, it is not a straightforward, or easy to define concept.
In order to allow readers to understand my outlook on such a broad topic, I ask where
we draw the line between real and fake when most--if not all--news is biased? For
example, researchers at the Stanford Graduate School of Education found in an study of
more than 7,800 students that most didn't suspect potential bias in a tweet from an
activist group when tested on spotting the differences between real and fake news. In
order to successfully identify news sources as real or fake, readers and viewers must first
identify the bias in an article. Ultimately, fake news and biased output can include
misleading headlines, claims lacking supporting facts, fallacies, satire, gossip,

4
How Americans get their news. American Press Institute, 2017. Accessed 3 May 2017.
 Walker- 7

conspiracy and even lies. For example, The Pew Research Center found that the average
positive believability rating for the news organizations researched is only 56%5. Overall,
fake news is difficult to specifically define or put into boundaries. In conclusion, New
York Times writer Farhad Manjoo6 best summarizes the integration of fake news into
journalism, stating, the internet is distorting our collective grasp on the truth...lies have
become institutionalized. There are now entire sites whose only mission is to publish
outrageous, completely fake news online (like real news, fake news has become a
business.

Fake News & Its Users

In an effort to understand the presence of fake news, and its definition according to
different age groups, I interviewed Gabriela Grostic, an undergraduate politics major attending
Saint Marys College of California. Grostic recently researched students awareness of biased and
unbiased news output, creating a visual sculpture symbolizing the influx of news clouding the
publics accessibility to accurate information. This interview is shown below:

Q: What is fake news to you?

A: When I think of fake news, I think of it as the output of news from a biased source
aiming to make a left or right extremist opinion. There is no news source that is
completely unbiased. Everyone has some kind of intrinsic motivation for the things they
write; they want everyone to see things in a certain way. These people are effecting the
way people live their life.

Q: In your opinion, do you believe that fake news has always existed in forms such as
bias or rumor, or do you think this is a new concept?
A: I believe that fake news has always existed. Today, We're looking at a curve,
starting
at the the beginning technology, with the height of the internet phase in the 2000. We
used to get our newspapers and now we have meia through tv, phone, radio. We had little
news, then we had too much. And now we're starting at the bottom because of an influx
of news output.

Q: How is fake news affecting us? In an extreme case, do you think that Americans right
to freedom of speech and press is in jeopardy if fake news spirals out of control?
A: We've already seen Trump bar cnn reporters from coming to the white house, as a
liberal station. I don't know if this is taking away Americans right to speech, but the

5
News Organizations' Believability Declines. Pew Research Center, 2012. Accessed 3 May 2017.
Farhad Manjoo, "State of the Art" columnist for The New York Times
6

Manjoo, Farhad. How the Internet is Loosening Our Grip on the Truth. 2016. Accessed 3 May 2017.
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trump administration is definitely skewing news output through policies that favor the
special interest of their own administration. This is done by allowing republican news
sources to gather information more easily than democrats.

Fake News & The Politics of Media

In July of 2015, Huffington Post made headlines; as they declared their
immediate refusal to report on Trump's campaign as part of their news output. On
February 24, 2017, Donald Trump signed an executive order banning left-wing news
media sources from the white house; including CNN, The New York Times, The Los
Angeles Times, Politico, BuzzFeed, The BBC and The Guardian, as punishment for
reporting what he called fake news. As a result, these news coverage sites continued to
report on his outward sexism, racist outlooks, brutal honesty, and of course, his biased
and questionably unconstitutional ban on their own companies.
Overall, the medias inability to recognize Trump as a serious candidate running
for office signified the beginning of a very rocky relationship between President Trump
and the Media; an affair that will, in fact, change the way society views news media
entirely. By recalling Donald Trumps unpredictable journey to Presidency, it becomes
easier for readers to understand how the impact of fake news not only influences social
media users, but can also affect different aspect of media--including highly regarded
political affairs such as the Presidency.
The United States Constitution promises Americans the freedom to express their
opinions as they desire; however, the spread of false information and purposely
designed reports of inaccuracy directly disrespects this privilege, and damages the
reputation of the journalism industry. While it has been established that technology is a
vital tool utilized by a majority of the population, the continuation and rise of fake
news that is spread as a means of entertainment will damage societies trust in media,
and jeopardize our privilege to the freedom of speech.
Additionally, reliability on Journalism as a respected news source will
dramatically decline, perhaps rendering journalists as useless and unworthy of trust. As
a result, this will cause citizens to feel disconnected to government, politics, worldly
affairs and each other. In a worst case scenario, this predicted reality could cause mass
frustration and anger. Citizens will eventually protest what they believe to be media
secrecy, demanding truth, accuracy and trustworthy sources of news. If we continue to
create chaos in the media industry, it will cease to exist as we know it to be.

Fake News & Whats Next

Currently, POTUS has self-declared waragainst news media, stating, I want
you all to know that we are fighting the fake news. Its fake, phony, fake. (Nussbaum,
Mccaskill, Politico), and later at the Conservative Political Action Conference, Trump
 Walker- 9

declared, fake news doesnt tell the truth...I say it doesnt represent the people. It never
will represent the people. And were gonna do something about it, because we have to go
out and we have to speak our minds, and we have to be honest.
While Americans not-so-patiently wait for Trumps fight against fake news, it is
important for readers, viewers and listeners to double check their sources in order to
detect if the author is credible. For further precautions, readers can research more than
one source in order to expose fallacies or biases. Ultimately, it is important for readers
to understand the existence of fake news as a crisis in news journalism. We must work
to eliminate the spread of false information throughout all forms of news outlets.
Perhaps we should take Timothy J. ORoukes advice, create platforms, spread the word
and be optimistic.
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Works Cited:

Anderson, Monica. Technology Device Ownership: 2015. Pew Research Center, 2015.
Barthel, Michael, Amy Mitchell, and Jesse Holcomb. Many Americans Believe Fake
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Activity Systems: How Texts Organize
Activity and People. 2004. Accessed 8 May 2017.
Carson, Biz. Here's everything you need to know about how many people are using
Snapchat. Business Insider, 2017. Accessed 3 May 2017.
Cellphones, Computers Are the Most Commonly Owned Devices. Americans Internet
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Diamond, Jeremy. Donald Trump jumps in: The Donald's latest White House run is
officially on. CNN Politics, 2015. Accessed 3 May 2017.
Edwards, Jim. 'Facebook Inc.' Actually Has 2.2 Billion Users Now Roughly One
Third Of The Entire Population Of Earth. Business Insider, 2014. Accessed 3
May 2017.
Farhi, Paul. CNN, New York Times, other media barred from White House briefing.
The Washington Post, 2017. Accessed 3 May 2017.
Gillin, Joshua. Fake news website starts as joke, gains 1 million views within 2 weeks.
PolitiFact, 2017.
Holan, Angie D. 2016 Lie of the Year: Fake news. PolitiFact, 2016.
How Americans get their news. American Press Institute, 2017. Accessed 3 May 2017.
Manjoo, Farhad. How the Internet is Loosening Our Grip on the Truth. 2016. Accessed
3 May 2017.
Manjoo, Farhad, "State of the Art" columnist for The New York Times
Nelson, Jacob L. Is fake news a fake problem? Columbia Journalism Review, 2017.
News Organizations' Believability Declines. Pew Research Center, 2012. Accessed 3
May 2017.
Nussbaum, Matthew, and Nolan D. McCaskill. White House goes to war with the
media. Politico, 2017. Accessed 3 May 2017.
Perrin, Andrew, and Maeve Duggan. Americans Internet Access: 2000-2015. Pew
Research Center, 2015. Accessed 3 May 2017.
Postman, Neil, and Steve Powers. How to Watch TV News. . Accessed 20 Mar. 2017.
Reilly, Katie. Another Poll Found President Trump's Approval Rating Is Historically
Low. TIME, 2017
Trumps Followers. Haner, Josh. The Data Behind Trumps Twitter Takeover.
Politico Magazine.
Weller, Chris. The 25 most high-tech cities in the world. Business Insider, 2016.