Spotting Misinformation, False Articles

The Internet has made it easier than ever to spread outright lies to a vast audience. Much of what consumers see on social media and even in certain news sites isn’t always the truth. One driving factor in the spread of misinformation is due to political views or other forms of bias. For example, users on Twitter(X), Instagram and other social media apps have posted misleading rumors and videos on the wars in Gaza, Ukraine or other places due to their bias against a certain side or to paint another side in a positive light. Footage from the Syrian civil war was inaccurately linked to Israeli actions in Gaza by pro-Hamas accounts, for example, and on the other side false claims were made against Hamas by pro-Israeli ones. Propaganda is also a classic form of misinformation used to sway the public’s views – for example Russian propaganda denies Ukraine’s distinct culture, language and heritage and the country’s right to exist, misinformation used to justify their invasion of the country. Another factor in misinformation is simply to troll or otherwise cause mischief, made extremely easy by the Internet. With the recent boom in AI, deepfakes and other forms of misinformation can be quickly created and potentially fool millions of viewers. For example, sexually explicit AI-generated images of Taylor Swift went viral on social media, depicting her in ways that are both unethical to share on the Internet and that paint her in an inaccurate light. There is also satire, or purposeful misinformation for humorous intent. Sites like The Onion are famous for their satirical news articles poking fun at actual events. While satire is technically misinformation, it is not spread with the intent of deceiving others into actually believing it is true, rather for comedic purposes.

Evidently, the Internet is rife with misinformation in this current era, which makes knowing how to spot it all the more imperative. Some tips to follow when combing for disinformation online include:

  1. Express greater caution when researching controversial topics: Polarizing issues are easy places to spread disinformation out of, as the emotions of people online are greater likely to be invested in such topics. This makes these subjects attractive to trolls, ragebaiters and other spreaders of misinformation.
  2. Investigate the site/platform: The website or other platform can reveal much about the credibility of the information. Looking at mission statements, information on the authors and other directors of the site and the currency of the article can help detect possible misinformation. Sites with clear biases or old/low-quality articles are more likely to harbor disinformation.
  3. Check sources(if there are any at all): Articles that cite sources are more likely to be reliable; however, the sources themselves should also be inspected to check for any bias or other unreliability. Unreliable sources typically yield unreliable information.
  4. Is it a joke?: Of course, a “source” could also have been published with comedic intent. Not all misinformation should be dismissed as lies produced to deceive the public; some could be made with the intent of satire. One should check if what they were looking at was intended as a joke before making any further conclusions, especially in today’s Internet that is concerned less with serious topics.

CRAAP

The CRAAP test is a useful tool to detect possible misinformation when navigating the Internet and searching for sources. CRAAP is an acronym that stands for Currency, Relevancy, Authority, Accuracy and Purpose. When searching for a source, asking questions regarding CRAAP can help decide whether a certain source is reliable or not.

Currency – How recently published was the source? Has it been updated for any outdated information?

Relevancy – Does the information relate to the topic of interest? Is it of an appropriate knowledge level? Is the source appropriate to use?

Authority – Who is the author/publisher? Is there information regarding them and their credentials? Do they seem to have authority on the topic of interest?

Accuracy – Where does the information come from(where are their sources)? Is there evidence? Are there any grammatical errors or any clear signs of bias?

Purpose – Why is the information there(to inform, to persuade, to entertain)? Is there bias? Does the website state their purpose clearly? 

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