What kinds of fake news exist?
There are four broad categories of fake news, according to media professor Melissa Zimdars of Merrimack College.
CATEGORY 1: Fake, false, or regularly misleading websites that are shared on Facebook and social media. Some of these websites may rely on “outrage” by using distorted headlines and decontextualized or dubious information in order to generate likes, shares, and profits.
CATEGORY 2: Websites that may circulate misleading and/or potentially unreliable information
CATEGORY 3: Websites which sometimes use clickbait-y headlines and social media descriptions
CATEGORY 4: Satire/comedy sites, which can offer important critical commentary on politics and society, but have the potential to be shared as actual/literal news
No single topic falls under a single category - for example, false or misleading medical news may be entirely fabricated (Category 1), may intentionally misinterpret facts or misrepresent data (Category 2), may be accurate or partially accurate but use an alarmist title to get your attention (Category 3) or may be a critique on modern medical practice (Category 4.) Some articles fall under more than one category. Assessing the quality of the content is crucial to understanding whether what you are viewing is true or not. It is up to you to do the legwork to make sure your information is good.
What's wrong with fake news?
Why should you care about whether or not your news is real or fake?
- You deserve the truth. You are smart enough to make up your own mind - as long as you have the real facts in front of you. You have every right to be insulted when you read fake news, because you are in essence being treated like an idiot.
- Fake news destroys your credibility. If your arguments are built on bad information, it will be much more difficult for people to believe you in the future.
- Fake news can hurt you, and a lot of other people. Purveyors of fake and misleading medical advice like Mercola.com and NaturalNews.com help perpetuate myths like HIV and AIDS aren't related, or that vaccines cause autism. These sites are heavily visited and their lies are dangerous.
- Real news can benefit you. If you want to buy stock in a company, you want to read accurate articles about that company so you can invest wisely. If you are planning on voting in an election, you want to read as much good information on a candidate so you can vote for the person who best represents your ideas and beliefs. Fake news will not help you make money or make the world a better place, but real news can.
Quick and simple debunking exercise
Compare these two links. Which one do you think is true? Why or why not?
1 - Eat This Not That: Shocking Facts About Farmed Salmon
2 - Washington State Department of Health: Farmed vs. Wild Salmon
Games
- CheckologyThe News Literacy Project, combined with Facebook, have developed a fake news identification project geared for middle school and up.
- Fake News! the GameManipulate the public by becoming a fake news guru. For iOS only.
- Bad NewsSpread misinformation via a choose-your-own-adventure setup.
Other Resources
- The Poynter InstituteThe Poynter Institute develops resources for journalists and writers, plus offers resources on fact checking and media literacy for the general public.
- The News Literacy Project Facebook PageA nonprofit whose purpose is to provide tools and resources to middle and high school students (and their classrooms) on media literacy
- Framework for Information Literacy for Higher EducationFrom the Association for College and Research Libraries (ACRL), a division of the American Library Association. This is an in-depth look at the factors that go into discerning the reliability of a claim.
- Society of Professional Journalists: Professional Code of EthicsWhat makes real news real? In part, it's because of journalistic ethics. The Society of Journalistic Ethics provides a code of professional ethics for journalists to adhere to.
- AllSidesThis site provides articles and an assessment of their bias, from left to right.
- NPR: Five ways teachers are fighting fake newsFive in-class exercises used by real teachers for teaching about fake news
- New York Times: Evaluating sources in a post-truth worldGeared for classroom use, this is a sample lesson plan on analyzing fake news
- Carroll University: Post-Truth and Fake NewsLibGuide developed by instructional librarian Joe Hardenbrook, this guide provides an excellent set of demonstrations and how-to advice on debunking news,.
- Shorenstein Center (Harvard): Combating Fake News: An Agenda for Research and ActionConclusions from a fake news conference held February 17-18, 2017 and a plan to tackle fake news in the future.
- McGill Office for Science and SocietyFrom McGill University. A weekly news feed debunking myths and fake news online.
- Teaching Tolerance: News LiteracyA guide to working with children and young adults on information literacy
Newseum: E.S.C.A.P.E
- E.S.C.A.P.E. lesson planDeveloped by the Newseum, a museum in Washington, DC dedicated to understanding the press and media, this guide uses the E.S.C.A.P.E. method of understanding fake news.
- E.S.C.A.P.E. posterGet your own free poster!
Fact-Checking: The Facts
What can I do to avoid fake news?
Fact checking links
- LinkedInA professional networking website where you can look up the authors of articles and books to see if they're credible.
- FactCheckA product of the Annenberg Public Policy Center, this site is terrific for checking up on political claims.
- PolitifactThe Pulitzer Prize-winning Politifact researches the claims of politicians and checks their accuracy.
- Snopes.comOne of the oldest debunking sites on the Internet, Snopes.com focuses on urban legends, news stories and memes. the also cite their sources at the end of each debunking.
- Hoax-SlayerSimilar to Snopes but tighter in scope, Hoax-Slayer focuses on email hoaxes, identity theft scams and spam.
- The Washington Post Fact-CheckerWhile focused primarily on political facts, it covers specific claims in-depth and with plenty of cross-referencing.
- Veracity (iPhone app)Double check image sources and see where they came from.
Known fake, parodic and misleading news sites
- The Daily Dot: Fake News Sites ListNOTE: This list is not exhaustive and may be updated at any time. A compiled list of fake news sites to watch out for.
- List of Fake and Parody NewsProfessor Zimdars' original list and criteria, with updates and addenda.
- The OnionOne of America's premier parodic news sites.
- The Borowitz ReportFrom humorist Andy Borowitz, a column parodizing and commenting on current news trends
- Dr. Joseph MercolaMercola is a doctor of osteopathy who has frequently been targeted by the FDA for promoting false, misleading and even dangerous medical advice. His site promotes products and his blog includes false and/or misleading information about medical topics.
News outlet codes of ethics and standards
One of the ways in which a news source demonstrates its authenticity and responsibility to its readers is through a publicly accessible code of ethics or standards. A sample of various codes, mission statements and ethics handbooks are listed below.
- American Society of News Editors: Codes of EthicsA comprehensive list of codes of ethics from 47 different news outlets and professional organizations dedicated to journalism