🎯 Learning Objectives
Develop the Information Technology learning strand:
- Discuss examples of disinformation spread online
- Define the term ‘fake news’ and discuss the quantity of fake news available online
- Identify why fake news exists and who creates it
- Discuss ways of identifying fake news and other forms of disinformation
💬 Key Vocabulary
- censorship
- targeted advertising
- fake news
- filter bubble
- right to access
- right to privacy
📖 What is fake news?
Fake news is deliberate disinformation or hoaxes spread through traditional media or social media sites.
📝 What is the purpose of fake news?
- Who do you think creates fake news?
- Why do you think they do it?
- Why do you think people believe it?
Answer these questions in a new Word document titled Fake News.
We can find examples of fake news throughout human history:
- Rulers claiming they have won battles they actually lost
- Communities spreading rumours about people or groups they don’t like
- Politicians lying about the behaviour of their opponents
- Businesses advertising incorrect science to get people to buy their product
Here are some examples of viral fake news stories…
Anti-vaccine movement
What: Fake news stories claiming that vaccinations can be harmful to the health of your child.
Who spreads it: Anti-vaxxers (people who believe the above claim)
Why: Some anti-vaxxers really believe that vaccines can cause children to become sick or develop neurodivergences such as autism, which they view negatively.
Impact: Because of the extent of fake news stories that support this claim, lots of parents have stopped vaccinating their children. Diseases like measles have been increasing. Vaccine hesitancy is, according to the World Health Organisation, one of the top ten biggest threats to global health.
Birther propaganda
What: When Barack Obama ran for President in 2008, some of his opponents claimed he was ineligible because he was not born in the United States.
Who spreads it: Those who supported this claim were known as ‘birthers’; they were critics of Obama. Donald Trump was a notable supporter of the lie.
Why: Fake news stories about Obama and where he was born have been created by people who did not want him to become president; they have been shared by people who also didn’t want him to win the election, as well as by people susceptible to believing that he was not born in America because of their racial prejudice.
Impact: Although Obama still won the election, he still had to spend time proving he was born in Hawaii. This phenomenon also allowed Obama’s opponents to challenge his legitimacy to run without being openly racist.
Ireland accepts refugees from America
What: In 2016, a viral news story spread claiming that Ireland was allowing Americans disappointed with Trump’s election to come to Ireland as refugees.
Who spreads it: Articles making this claim were shared hundreds of thousands of times, predominantly by liberal or left-wing news sources.
Why: The claim can be traced back to a quote from a spokesperson of a small island off the coast of Ireland, which said they would be happy for Americans to move to Ireland. The meaning of the quote was misinterpreted and exaggerated, resulting in the more controversial headline. The original quote has also been denied by the spokesperson it was attributed to.
Impact: Despite being widely shared, this story has also been publicly debunked and has had little impact; as far as we know, no Americans have travelled to Ireland as refugees as a result.
Task
- Who do you think creates fake news?
- Why do you think they do it?
- Why do you think people believe it?
Add the answers to these questions into your Word document.
💭 How do you identify fake news?
When you are online, how do you tell the difference between real and fake news?
When you read a news story online, you can ask the following questions to check whether it might be fake:
Is the website legitimate?
Does the content seem exaggerated, unbelievable, or appealing to emotions such as fear and anger?
Is there enough information to determine whether the content is still relevant and comes from a reliable source?
📝 Activity – After further investigation
It may not be easy to spot fake news at a glance, but there are lots of quick checks you can make to verify the story.
- Search for the headline.
Is the story corroborated by other websites?
Search for the following headlines:
- The Queen HATES corgis
- Asda puts restrictions on shoppers to limit stockpiling
- Boris Johnson has nuclear bunker in his own back garden
Which are real news stories, and which are fake? Write your findings in your Word document.
- Investigate the author.
When you search for their name, do you find other articles that they have written?
Which of the following are real journalists? Write your findings in your Word document.
- Laurie Penny
- Stephen Bush
- Alissa Ralph
- Tessa Weinberg
📖 Trusted news sources
One way of avoiding fake news is by sticking to trusted news sources, instead of reading the news from articles shared on social media. Here are some trusted news sources:
Will using these sources ensure you never encounter fake news? Write your answers in your Word document.
Top tips for using sources in your work
Sources for your work should be:
Current: When was it published or last updated?
Relevant: How does it relate to the point you are making?
Authoritative: Who wrote it and how much do they know about the subject?
Accurate: Is the information correct?
Neutral: Why was the source created, and does it serve an agenda?
📝 Activity – Trusted news sources
Write a news article about fake news.
In your article, explain:
- Why fake news is created
- Why fake news is harmful
- How to spot fake news
- What can be done to stop fake news
In this lesson, you…
- Learnt about fake news, how it is created and for what purpose
In this topic, you…
- Started thinking about your online activities from a safety perspective
- Learnt about how online reputations are created and attacked
- Learnt about fake news, how it is created and for what purpose
🏅 Badge it
🥈 Silver Badge
- Upload your basic notes, including your investigations into headlines and journalists to www.bournetolearn.com.
🥇 Gold Badge
- Upload your good notes, including your investigations into headlines and journalists to www.bournetolearn.com.
🥉 Platinum Badge
- Upload your excellent notes, including your investigations into headlines and journalists to www.bournetolearn.com.