Week 4: Information

Evaluation, Fake News, Privacy

Post-Truth, Truthiness and Alternative Facts: Information
Behavior and Critical Information Consumption for a New Age
Sarah Fetzer,
Shannon Hearne,
David Tully
& Joy Whitfield
Question the Authority of the Reading

Nicole A. Cooke

● PhD, Communication, Information and Library Studies, Rutgers

● Associate Professor & MS/LIS Program Director for the School of Information Sciences, University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign

Research Focus

● Human information behavior (particularly in an online context)

● Information literacy and instruction
● Critical cultural information studies
● Diversity and social justice in librarianship
● LIS education and pedagogy (particularly in the online environment)

Photo from: http://www.nicolecooke.info/

Question the Authority of the Reading
Published Works & Presentations

● Cooke, N. A. (2018). Fake News and Alternative Facts: Information Literacy in a Post-Truth Era. Chicago, IL: ALA
Editions.
● Cooke, N. A. "Fake News or Free Speech: Is There a Right to be Misinformed?" ALA Annual Conference, American
Library Association, New Orleans, LA. (June 2018).
● “Post-Truth: Fake News and a New Era of Information Literacy.” Programming Librarian: A website of the American
Library Association Public Programs Office. February 2017. (invited webinar).
http://programminglibrarian.org/learn/post-truth-fake-news-and-new-era-information-literacy
● Speaker at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Public Interest Technology Summit on the topic of Misinformation,
Democracy & Civic Participation, Oct. 13, 2018.

Publication & Publisher

● Library Quarterly
● The University of Chicago Press
○ Publishes over 80 scholarly journals
○ All peer-reviewed
○ Non-profit organization
What is the Intention of the Work?
● An essay which looks specifically at fake news and its related concepts, and how they impede upon how users interact
with and critically evaluate information. The pieces examines the ways in which knowledge of information behavior
and critical evaluation skills can “promote more savvy information consumption (Cooke, 2017).
● A brief examination of the different types of literacy skills
○ Critical Information Literacy
○ Digital Literacy
○ Metaliteracy
● The author argues for a metaliteracy approach to information consumption based upon the following:
○ “Self-referential framework containing emerging technologies and unification of multiple literacy types” (Mackey
and Jacobson, 2011, 2014; Jacobson and Mackey, 2013)
○ Participants play active role in knowledge creation by producing and sharing knowledge (eg social media)
○ Metaliteracy provides an holistic lens which examines both the consumer and context which drives information
production and consumption
Is it Fair and Balanced?
● Overall, yes the article is fair and balanced
○ Author’s perspective
○ Perspective versus bias
○ Author have published and presented extensively
● Disagreement with author
○ News sources influenced by “loss of access”
● Extensive Reference list

Does it Espouse an Opinion?

● Yes, this is an argument, not a research project
○ Differences between an argumentative piece and a research project
○ Sharing of knowledge and expertise adds value to the discussion
Is this opinion influenced by the background of the
author or of the publisher?
● Yes, this is influenced by the background of the author.
○ Direct first-hand experiences of the author. The author has widely published and presented and thus is unlikely
to change her opinion of a topic she has established a great deal of experience in.

● Somewhat influenced by the background of the publisher

○ Published in Library Quarterly which is a peer-reviewed quarterly journal covering library science.
○ The readers are likely to be librarians and other information professionals. Librarians are likely to have very
similar opinions when it comes to concepts such as information behavior and critical evaluation.
○ There’s a possibility, not a certainty, that the tone of piece is designed for this particular audience.
Privileged Voices and Points of View
● One main underlying assumption that is made in this article that is outside the
scope of profession or education level.
● References without explanation to The Colbert Report on p. 212
● References without explanation to events leading up to 2016 election on pp.
211-213
● Reference without explanation to Kellyanne Conway on p. 212
● Example used of Brian Williams on p. 217

Can we guess the point of view being privileged

here?
An American Point of View
● The privileged voice here is that of an
American who:
○ Has reliable access to technology
○ Is politically informed
○ Remembers the events of the 2016 presidential
election
● Other countries undoubtedly have
problems stemming from misinformation
and disinformation spreading on the
internet.
● In its present state, the article would be
extremely hard for someone from
another country not versed in American
politics and pop culture to understand.
Ways to Combat This
● Fully explain all examples and references used. Do not assume they are
“common knowledge.”
● Seek examples of misinformation and disinformation from outside the realm of
the United States.
● Acknowledge that misinformation and disinformation can be consumed
through sources other than digital.
● Be cognizant that librarians exist in many nations, and that they may all benefit
from these concepts and information.

Ex.: China Spreading “Fake News” in Taiwan to Swing Elections

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/11/news-rattles-taiwan-elections-18112300514
0173.html