After watching this
week’s video “How to separate facts and fiction online, I was inspired to learn
more about fact in faction not only online but with a any news source available.
With fake news
lurking around every corner of social media, it seems more difficult than ever
to separate fact from fiction.
No one is
more aware of that than news literacy professors, who teach the
critical-thinking skills necessary to evaluate any piece of journalism.
We spoke
with three news literacy experts who shared their advice for being a
responsible news consumer. Here are seven quick things you should do to judge
whether you can trust what you read.
1.
- . Read the article
This one
seems like a no-brainer, but it's essential to actually read an article before
letting it form your opinion — especially if the headline makes an outrageous
claim. A recent study found
that only 59% of articles shared by Twitter users have actually been clicked,
suggesting that many people share links based on the headline alone.
"Clicking
is a good place to start," Jonathan Anzalone, assistant director of Stony
Brook University's Center for News Literacy, told Business Insider.
2.
- Check the URL
The fake news
site abcnews.com.co tricked readers into thinking they were reading the real
ABC News with similar branding and a nearly identical URL. BISome purveyors of fake news choose domain
names suspiciously similar to those of established news companies.
Leading the
pack is the notorious abcnews.com.co, whose name and logo mimic the branding of
the real ABC News. During the 2016 election, the website attracted readers with
bogus stories like one claiming President Barack Obama banned the Pledge of
Allegiance in schools, and another that "quoted" a fictional person
who claimed he was paid $3,500 to protest against Donald Trump. Both stories
were debunked.
"Go
beyond the masthead at the top, because it's really easy to copy a brand,"
said Peter Adams, senior vice president at the News Literacy Project.
Other
culprits that fail the URL test are cnn-trending.com,
washingtonpost.com.co, and bloomberg.ma.
Make sure the site you're on isn't an impostor.
- Who is the author?
Always check
the author of the news you read. If you don't recognize the name, you may want
to inspect other articles by the same person to see if they're a reliable
voice. Bonus points if the site provides a way to contact the author.
And if no
authors are listed, ask yourself: Why don't they want to stand behind their
work?
"A
story without a byline is a huge red flag," Hunter College journalism
program director Sissel McCarthy told Business Insider.
- .
Check the receipts
Some fake news
writers pushed the debunked "Pizzagate" conspiracy, which alleged
that Hillary Clinton campaign members were involved in a sex trafficking ring
at a Washington, DC pizzeria. Associated Press/Jose Luis Magana. Any factual claim in a news article should
be backed up by a source. Ideally, an article will cite verifiable sources like
government figures, scientific studies, court documents, and the like.
Be
especially vigilant when an eyebrow-raising claim doesn't have a source to back
it up, McCarthy said.
For example,
take the notorious "Pizzagate" conspiracy, which claimed members of
Hillary Clinton's campaign were involved in a child sex-trafficking ring run
out of a Washington, DC pizzeria. Countless fake news pieces were written about
the alleged scandal, without a shred of evidence. But do some digging, and
you'll find that the entire conspiracy originated from a single
unsubstantiated tweet from a white-supremacy account.
- Cross-check with other sources
Despite the
claims of one famous fake news story, Pope Francis did not endorse Donald Trump
for president.Franco
Origlia / Getty Images. If you think you might be reading fake news, try to find an
article about the same subject from different media outlets. If you can't find
the story on any other site, you may have been bamboozled.
"If the
article seems too good to be true, or we really want it to be true, there
should be extra incentive to double-check or triple-check," Anzalone said.
One of the
most notorious fake news stories of the election season purported that Pope
Francis endorsed Trump for president — a stunning revelation. But you wouldn't
find the story in The New York Times, the Associated Press, or USA Today. You'd
only see it on a little-known site called WTOE 5 (or other fake news sites that
copied the article verbatim).
That's
because it wasn't true. If a story of that magnitude is legitimate, expect
multiple news outlets to write about it.
- .
Quality control
How's the
quality of the writing in the article you're reading? Are there words in all
caps, or a plethora of exclamation marks? Both are rarities in the world of
legitimate journalism.
How about
the photos — do they appear photoshopped or doctored? That's another sign the
site you're on may not be trustworthy, Anzalone said.
- Find out more about the site
One popular
fake news story purported that President Barack Obama banned the Pledge of
Allegiance in US schools. Official
White House Photo by Pete Souza. Does the article's website have an "about us" page,
or another way to learn more about the company? Having one is a good way for a
site to establish credibility and clue readers into its legitimacy.
Some fake
news sites disguise themselves as local media outlets with names like
"Denver Guardian," "Boston Tribune," and "Dallas Star
News."
"People
weren't familiar with the names of local papers outside their own cities, so
they didn't detect it," Adams said.
"It's
mocked up to look like news from institutional organizations, but there's no
such paper as the Dallas Star News. People outside of Dallas will never know.
People be aware! Fake news is out there take the time
and the steps to figure out what your reading is truth or lie. It is critical
that people take the time to find out if what they are reading is fiction or
fact. We have the right to know if what reading is the truth.
Destini
Hi Destini,
ReplyDeleteYour posting for this week is extremely important! In a time where so many news stories are constantly popping up everywhere, it is important that we are paying attention to what the source actually is. I was talking with someone this past weekend at drill, and all of a sudden he brought up politics. He was so adamant about why he despised a certain party and along the way, I had to stop him to see where he was getting his information from. He proceeds to tell me that it's just something he read online. This led me to lose all credibility with whatever he was saying because they sounded more like opinions than facts. This emphasized to me that you can't take everything you read at face value. The information may sound good or appealing; however, if the source isn't credible then it could potentially be "fake news". As strategic communication professionals, it is important that we fact check thoroughly, especially because we will inevitably be representing an organization or a brand. We have to be as factual as possible so that we maintain the brand's reputation, as well as, our own. The guidelines that you went through in your post are definitely something we all should keep in mind when reading and researching articles!