Can you spot fake news?

With a general election coming up and the world in the grips of an international pandemic, knowing how to spot fake news, misinformation and conspiracy theories is more important than ever.

There is no shortage of this kind of information circulating on social media – from the “unfounded and offensive claims” surrounding the first case in the recent South Auckland Covid-19 outbreak, to various theories and false claims about Covid-19 generally.

Elections in other parts of the world, notably the US, have been beset in the past by reports of fake news and information being spread with the aim of manipulating voters. Indeed, moves are being made here in New Zealand to ensure our elections are not impacted by the same issues, with Radio New Zealand recently reporting that Facebook is taking steps to stop the spread of fake news and to guard against foreign interference in New Zealand’s election, on its platform.

The consequences of dodgy information can be significant. According to reporting by Newsroom, research shows that misinformation can be hard to get rid of once people have had repeated exposure to it. Conspiracy ‘laundering’ - when such information moves from small fringe groups to mainstream discussion via the media or public figures – can increase the impact the information has and start to undermine compliance around things like Covid-19 restrictions and mask-wearing, it says.

The US-based not-for-profit Centre for Humane Technology publishes a ‘Ledger of Harms’ – a series of cited data illustrating the human cost of fake news, misinformation and conspiracy theories.

“Under immense pressure to prioritise engagement and growth, technology platforms have created a race for human attention that’s unleashed invisible harms to society,” the Centre says.

For example, a paper published in Science Magazine found that fake news spreads six times faster than real news. Researchers attribute this to the fact it is more attention grabbing, emotional and novel - leading to greater shares and reposts.

Concerningly, an Oxford University study of 22 million tweets during the 2016 US presidential election found that Twitter users shared more “misinformation, polarising, and conspiratorial content” than actual news stories.

During the same elections, more fake political headlines were shared on Facebook than real ones in the last three months of the campaign, according to analysis by global online news provider BuzzFeed News.

Meanwhile, research from Carnegie Mellon University in the US, found that nearly half (45 percent) of tweets about corona virus were from bots spreading fake information. The researchers noted that these posts appeared to be aimed at sowing division within America.

Fake news can then begin to be embellished by its readers. According to a paper published in Psychological Science, exposure to a fake political news story can actually rewire your memories. When voters were shown fake stories for the research, many later ‘remembered’ the stories as if they were real events, and then also ‘remembered’ additional details of the events.

The research drawn together by the Centre for Humane Technology also shows that exposure to fake news increases the reader’s chance of believing the messages the next time they see it, even if they are aware the information is suspect.

So as our news world becomes increasingly complex, spotting fake news is fast becoming an essential skill. In fact, this article from The Conversation suggests the way our memory works means it might be impossible to resist fake news completely. But here’s how you can tune up your fake news radar, with these Facebook tips.

The research drawn together by the Centre for Humane Technology also shows that exposure to fake news increases the reader’s chance of believing the messages the next time they see it, even if they are aware the information is suspect.

So as our news world becomes increasingly complex, spotting fake news is fast becoming an essential skill. In fact, this article from The Conversation suggests the way our memory works means it might be impossible to resist fake news completely. But here’s how you can tune up your fake news radar, with these Facebook tips.

Facebook’s tips for spotting fake news

1. Be skeptical of headlines. False news stories often have catchy headlines in all caps with exclamation points. If shocking claims in the headline sound unbelievable, they probably are.
   
   
2. Look closely at the link. A phony or look-alike link may be a warning sign of false news. Many false news sites mimic authentic news sources by making small changes to the link. You can go to the site to compare the link to established sources.
   
   
3. Investigate the source. Ensure that the story is written by a source that you trust with a reputation for accuracy. If the story comes from an unfamiliar organisation, check their "About" section to learn more.
   
   
4. Watch for unusual formatting. Many false news sites have misspellings or awkward layouts. Read carefully if you see these signs.
   
   
5. Consider the photos. False news stories often contain manipulated images or videos. Sometimes the photo may be authentic, but taken out of context. You can search for the photo or image to verify where it came from.
   
   
6. Inspect the dates. False news stories may contain timelines that make no sense, or event dates that have been altered.
   
   
7. Check the evidence.Check the author's sources to confirm that they are accurate. Lack of evidence or reliance on unnamed experts may indicate a false news story.
   
   
8. Look at other reports. If no other news source is reporting the same story, it may indicate that the story is false. If the story is reported by multiple sources you trust, it's more likely to be true.
   
   
9. Is the story a joke? Sometimes false news stories can be hard to distinguish from humor or satire. Check whether the source is known for parody, and whether the story's details and tone suggest it may be just for fun.
   
   
10. Some stories are intentionally false. Think critically about the stories you read, and only share news that you know to be credible.

You can also mark posts as fake news from within your Facebook feed.

It seems it’s not just our hands that we need to practice extra hygiene with at the moment. We should all be practicing good information hygiene too, the US News Literacy Project suggests. It says we need to make sure we ‘sanitise’ information before we share it with others to ensure we’re not helping to spread fake news. It offers the following four tips for doing so.

1. Pause. Don’t let your emotions take over when you’re reading something.
   
   
2. Glance through the comments: has someone else replied with the fact check?
   
   
3. Do a quick google search to see if the information is correct. Turn the claim into a question and search on that, referring to credible sources.
   
   
4. Ask for the source: Reply to the person who shared the post and ask for the original source, or for more information to support the claim. Raising this where others can see it lets others know that the claim is questionable.