Learning Outcomes:

Fake news and diversification

 People Behind Fake news
• Fake news, hate speech and misinformation is creeping through all social media
platforms. With more and more people relying on social media for as a source for
news, there are worries that such content could influence audiences unable to
distinguish truth from fact or news from propaganda.
• It’s hard to venture online these days—or switch on any cable network—without
coming across a heated discussion over “fake news.” Basic facts and figures, ranging
from crowd sizes to poll numbers to whether or not it rained, now appear to be under
negotiation. For many media consumers, it can feel as if we are living through an
entirely new dystopian era, with each news cycle or press conference sending us
further down the rabbit hole.
• But although the term “fake news” reflects our troubled political moment, the
phenomenon is nothing new, and neither is the psychology that explains its
persistence.
• “There’s a tendency for people to say, ‘Well, given the social media channels we
have now, these things can spread more quickly and have a greater effect than ever
before,” says Adam Waytz, an associate professor of management and organizations
at the Kellogg School. “There’s actually more to it than that. Many of us remember
when the most prominent news outlets in the world were reporting that Iraq might
have weapons of mass destruction. That was before Facebook and Twitter.”
• To understand how people in the same country, or same family, can have such vastly
differing takes on reality, Waytz suggests we should focus not on the role of social
media, but on the role of social psychology—in particular, the cognitive bias that
stems from our tribal mentalities. For Waytz, before we can learn to address our
divisiveness, it is important to understand its roots.
• “There’s an assumption that fake news exacerbates polarization,” Waytz says. “But it
might be the case that polarization exacerbates fake news.”
How to Spot Fake News
• Read beyond the headline. If a provocative headline drew your
attention, read a little further before you decide to pass along the
shocking information. Even in legitimate news stories, the headline
doesn’t always tell the whole story. But fake news, particularly efforts
to be satirical, can include several revealing signs in the text.
 
• Check the author. Do a quick search on the author. Are they credible?
are they real?

• Check the date. Some false stories aren’t completely fake, but rather
distortions of real events. These mendacious claims can take a
legitimate news story and twist what it says — or even claim that
something that happened long ago is related to current events.

• Is it a joke. If it 9s too outlandish, it might be satire. Research the

site and author to be sure.
• Check your biases. We know this is difficult. Confirmation
bias leads people to put more stock in information that
confirms their beliefs and discount information that
doesn’t. But the next time you’re automatically appalled
at some Facebook post concerning, say, a politician you
oppose, take a moment to check it out.

• Consult the experts. Ask the librarian, or consult a fact-

checking site

• Supporting sources. Click on those links . Determine if

the info given actually supports the story.
Thankyou for Listening

MEMBERS:
JEFFERSON ESMAÑA
LYKA GRACE SEGOVIA
DYLYN JANE GALLEGO
HAROLD VILLAN