The spread of false and misleading information or ‘fake news’ is not a 21st century phenomenon. Early accounts date back to ancient civilisations and become increasingly elaborated as new media technology is introduced to the masses.
In general, fake news refer to the likes of misinformation and disinformation.
Whereas misinformation is false, inaccurate or misleading information communicated without the intention of deception, disinformation is a subset of it and is more deliberate in manipulating people through dishonest or misdirected information.
There are a number of reasons why this news is circulated. In featuring some historical examples of fake news, Barbara J Starmans from The Social Historian wrote that “some are spread for political advantage, while others are spread for financial gain.”
“Other fake news stories are nothing more sinister than an attempt to entertain, some stories come about by mistake while others are an act of desperation,” she added.
In recent decades, the increased use of social networking sites, alongside improved accessibility, affordability and portability of the Internet, have led to an explosion of fake news, with false information being shared widely in a matter of seconds without being fact-checked.
According to the Centre for Information Technology and Society (CITS) at the University of California Santa Barbara, there are differences between the way fake news are being spread before and since the introduction of social media.
Whereas older varieties come from those in authority who want to consolidate their power or publishers which sensationalise their reports to sell their newspapers, creators of modern fake news are a little more covert or ordinary who either have some form of ideological interests or are simply looking to make money.
And while content was manipulated within false stories of the old days, it has since expanded to distorting the source of the information which many are less likely to notice unless they scrutinise the finer details.
How social media present the news also makes users susceptible to fake news. For one, these platforms gather and display news from various outlets, irrespective of the quality, reliability or political leanings of their origins.
“Without a sense of the reputation of the original publisher being clear, it’s easy for fly-by-night provocateurs and manipulators to get their fake stories to approach the prominence of the traditional media outlets.
“If readers can’t readily identify who wrote or provided information for a story, it’s hard to judge its honesty without elaborate fact-checking, which most people don’t do,” said CITS.
These falsehoods can be forwarded by family, friends or people they follow on social networking sites, giving users the assumption that the messages they received are deemed plausible and are reflective of shared beliefs, despite not knowing where these unsubstantiated stories come from.
“Relatedly, social media platforms automatically tag articles with indications of their popularity, which also makes people more likely to tune in to a story when those counts are high,” noted CITS.
The popularity of these articles are based on the number of views or likes they gain, as well as popularity indicators that are methodically amplified by online bots.
As a result, unless users take the initiative to discover less popular news that differ from their general preference, their information consumption becomes limited to what is presently trending, even if some reports are actually fake.
