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Fake News

Guide developed by HACC Librarians with input from HACC Communications and English Faculty

Confusion Caused by Fake News

Us Opinion on the Confusion caused by made-up news

US Opinion on Confusion Caused by Made-Up News and Information, March 2019
  • Made-up news and information: 67% causes a great deal of confusion, 24% causes some confusion, 8% doesn't cause much or no confusion
  • Video/images that are altered or made up: 63% causes a great deal of confusion, 27% causes some confusion, 10% doesn't cause much or no confusion.
  • Breaking information that is not checked: 52% causes a great deal of confusion, 37% causes some confusion, 10% doesn't cause much or no confusion
  • Factual information that is one-sided: 48% causes a great deal of confusion, 41% causes some confusion, 11% doesn't cause much or no confusion
  • Satire about an issue or event: 24% causes a great deal of confusion, 48% causes some confusion, 27% doesn't cause much or no confusion

Fake News has received a significant amount of media coverage

Dangerous, false, and misleading Facebook and Twitter posts led to the January 6, 2021 Capital riot. The Digital New Deal Project monitors deceptive social media posts. This article contains the study's findings, along with charts, demonstrating the impact of social media sites  masquerading as journalism.

"Individuals who encounter false information on social media may actively spread it further, by sharing or otherwise engaging with it. Much of the spread of disinformation can thus be attributed to human action." According to the study, "The people reporting the greatest likelihood of sharing disinformation were those who thought it likely to be true, or who had pre-existing attitudes consistent with it. " This fascinating study should be read by both social media and non-social media users as it explains the thinking of social media users and the impact of inaccurate social media posts on society.

Deepfakes: Is This Video Even Real?

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