You wake up, scroll on TikTok, and see a video claiming your favorite celebrity has passed away. The video has gone viral with millions of likes, saves, shares and comments. You continue to scroll to learn more. Twenty more videos say the same thing. You are in shock. Is it true?
Whether it’s political, environmental or lifestyle news, apps such as TikTok, Instagram and X have made it difficult to differentiate what news is accurate and what’s false. Misinformation twists the truth and has reduced trust in credible journalism.
Ipsos, a multinational market research and consulting firm, conducted a poll in 2019 of over 25,000 interviews across more than 25 economies and found that 86 percent of online global citizens believe they’ve been exposed to fake news. Many people can’t tell if the news being spread is fake unless they do further research.
A study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, conducted from 2006 to 2017, found that false news stories are 70 percent more likely to be retweeted than true ones, because they’re often twisted to appeal to users. It takes true stories about six times as long to reach 1,500 people compared to fake stories. This happens because fake news is more interesting to users and it travels faster.
Social media is designed to encourage the rapid circulation of information through engagement-based content and targeted advertisements. This can amplify the smallest fake stories into worldwide ones. The goal is to keep users engaged by showing them attention-grabbing content.
Gizem Ceylan, a behavioral scientist at Yale University School of Management and the Center for Customer Insights, says social media user habits are a leading cause of the spread of misinformation. Ceylan found that others form opinions based on biases, which spread because they’re often tailored to reinforce those beliefs. News is more likely to be trusted when it matches one’s views.
In a March Bark survey, 37 percent of Giants reported getting their primary news from TikTok, 23 percent from The New York Times, 19 percent from Instagram and nine percent from the Cable News Network (CNN). This presents a trend toward social media platforms as the primary news source for students.
Students likely rely on social media as their primary source of information due to its accessibility. Unlike traditional news sources, social media provides instant updates that fit the users’ interests. 2Stallions, a digital marketing agency, explains,
“Social media algorithms are complex mathematical formulas that analyze user behavior, preferences and past interactions to determine what content is most relevant to show them.”
Additionally, misinformation easily manipulates people into spreading content that feels relatable and valuable.
To stop the spread of misinformation, recipients must verify that what they’ve been shown is accurate. It’s also important to recognize that anyone could be sharing a fake post without even knowing they’re contributing to the spread of false information.
It can be challenging to distinguish between true and false information because of how credible fake news can seem. When trying to spot misinformation, make sure to check the reliability of the author and the publication, the date and potential biases. The best way to quickly verify information is by checking other reliable sources. Finding credible sources is vital to avoid spreading fake news.
Chrome Fact Check is one website that can be installed to help determine whether content is accurate. News networks work extremely hard to gather and share accurate information. Make sure to follow the right steps to ensure you aren’t contributing to the spread of misinformation, as it continues to ruin trust in journalism.
