What exactly is “fake news”? Lately it seems that the term has been applied to any kind of news you happen to disagree with, but fake news has been around for a long time, even back to 1938 when Orson Welles did his famous broadcast of War of the Worlds, and people thought the US was actually being invaded by Martians. In its truest sense, fake news refers to sources that are deliberately trying to deceive you with fabricated stories, either to generate money, or to promote a particular agenda. But it’s worth knowing about the different ways news can be presented, and how to arm yourself with skills and resources to think critically about what you read or hear, and what others might pass on to you.
Genuinely fake
news – News that is deliberately designed to misrepresent the facts, with an aim to generate controversy or money. ABCnews.com.co an example of a web site that mimics the real ABC News site, but is actually someone else. Note that the Internet address ends in “.com.co” which is unusual, and not the same as the real ABC News web site, which is abcnews.go.com.
Satire – Real or made-up stories that are told humorously, but without deception. Funny news is designed to amuse, and is completely up front and honest about it. The Onion is a great example of a satirical news site that most people would never mistake for the real thing.
Biased news – Real news that comes from a source with an agenda, and may skew the facts, or leave out important context. The Huffington Post is a well known site that has a liberal point of view, and The Blaze is one that leans conservative. Although sites like these may be publishing legitimate and accurate news stories, they tend to highlight and promote articles that advance their particular political agenda, and may use loaded language in headlines to elicit an emotional response.
Faulty journalism – Genuine and well-regarded news sources sometimes slip up and make mistakes, which should quickly be followed up with a correction and apology. A good example occurred in January 2017 when Time magazine erroneously reported that President Trump had removed a bust of Martin Luther King from the Oval Office. When the reporting error was discovered they quickly retracted and apologized.
Fortunately, there are plenty of reputable fact-checking sites that investigate controversial stories in detail, and provide sourced information and greater context to help you understand the real story. Here are some of the best and best-known:
FactCheck.org A project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center
PolitiFact.com An independent fact-checking website created by the Tampa Bay Times
The Washington Post Fact Checker
Snopes.com Focuses more on Internet memes and urban legends
AP Fact Check Recent fact checks from the Associated Press
Media Bias Fact Check A list of major fact checking organizations and sites from around the world
Want to learn more? Here are a few articles and resources about the fake news phenomenon and how to develop the critical thinking skills needed for you to avoid being tricked.
MLS fake news page – This is a resource page from the Massachusetts Library System, a state agency for libraries and their patrons.
NPR Finder’s Guide to the Facts – National Public Radio has put together a good guide to navigating the news.
FactCheck.org – How to spot fake news – A guide from one of the best known fact-checking organizations.
Center for News Literacy – IMVA/IN – Another guide that uses the mnemonic IMVAIN to remind you of what questions to ask yourself when reading suspicious stories.
Web Literacy For Student Fact Checkers – by Mike Caulfield. An great ebook with information for students on how to evaluate online resources.
ARTICLES
PBS – Can librarians help solve the fake news problem?
Article from Wired magazine on fake news producers in Macedonia
Indiana University tech tool Hoaxy shows how fake news spreads
Fighting fake news, from American Libraries magazine
538.com – Fact-checking won’t save us from fake news
NPR – how to self check the news
NPR – You’ve probably been tricked by fake news and don’t know it
