Social Media Expands Fake News Faster
Anyone Can Write, Publish and Share Misinformation On Social Media Without Consequences
Non-professional journalists are able to write and capture photos with their phones and share them with other users. “The means to publish is now in the hands of citizens,” according to Stephen J.A. Ward in the blog post “Digital Media Ethics”.
Relationship Between Social Media And Fake News
There’s a “complex relationship” between social media and fake news, reports Best Media Info. Unlike, television, radio, and newspaper, news organizations and regular people are able to post on social media platforms for free, which makes it more accessible for people to create and spread fake content.
According to the University of Michigan Library, “fake news” is classified as “news stories that are false: the story itself is fabricated, with no verifiable facts, sources or quotes.”
The spread of misinformation via social platforms has had deadly consequences, according to Lens in Monash University.
Problems Of Fake News In Social Media
The problem of fake news in social media occurs when there are data voids, meaning: “when there are high levels of demand for information on a topic, but low levels of credible supply,” reports Nieman Journalism Lab, at Harvard.
An example of this situation occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. People were desperate to find ways to stop the disease from spreading, so they were going to social media platforms to look for answers. Fake information about the solutions to treat COVID “lead to confusion, conspiracy theories, self-medication, stockpiling, and overdoses,” reports First Draft.
Solutions That News Organizations And Social Media Companies Are Undertaking
In order to combat fake news, news organizations should provide high-quality news information, social media companies should invest in tools that will help spot fake news, schools should teach students about news literacy and should make it mandatory to have users follow several news platforms to make sure they’re getting accurate information, states The Brookings Institution.
