Fake... But How Do You Know?

How do you know if the information you get online can be trusted or not? There is no single, easy answer. Everyone who uses the Internet faces the same dilemma. In 2019, Pew Research Center conducted a poll of 6,127 adults in the US. They found that more Americans view made-up news as a bigger problem than terrorism, illegal immigration, racism, and sexism. Nearly seven-in-ten U.S. adults (68%) said made-up news and information greatly impacted confidence in government institutions, and just over half (54%) said it was having a major impact on our confidence in each other.

Verifying on-line information takes work on your part. And the “bad guys” can be very persuasive.

The first thing you can do is verify the source. For many organizations and individuals of note you will see a blue symbol with a checkmark next to their name if they have been verified on social media. This means they are who they say they are but it still doesn’t mean that their posts are accurate or unbiased.

As for “unverified” sources, I’m always wary of anything that is “forwarded” to me or shared by friends or relatives on social media. I typically trust my colleagues when it comes to academic or “work related“ info however. Tracking down rumors, misinformation, and “urban legends” can be hard work!

Second, check their website. The address should be understandable and consistent with who they are claiming to be. When you visit the website, take a look at the “about” section.  For a news site, you should also be able to see the names of their reporters and often a brief biography or credentials.

If there’s a picture accompanying a news story or shared in a post, you can double check the photo with an image search. For example in Google, right click the photo then select “Search Google for image.” If your search turns up multiple websites or articles including the photo in question for unrelated stories, it’s probably a “commercial image” or possibly a fake. “Clickbait” ads are notorious for this. If on the other hand, only a few instances of the photo for the same story appear, it’s most likely legitimate.

“Fake News” and bad information is a real problem on the Internet. Many of these sites are trying to take advantage of you in order to make money. If it seems like a scam, it probably is. Still others are trying to “build their brand” or get “likes” so that they can become a bigger “influencer” online. This is especially true on social media apps. And a few people just want to gossip. Be very skeptical of anything you read in the comments section. That’s one reason I turn mine off.

Verifying information is something that all of us have to take responsibility for. The Internet has made the problem of false information worse. To help you out, here are some websites you can use to verify whether or not something you’ve read is correct:

PolitiFact  

FactCheck.org  

Washington Post Fact Checker  

Snopes  

Media Bias/Fact Check  

AP Fact Check  

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