1.3: Fake News and Misinformation
- Page ID
- 289691
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[Blue Red and Green Letters Illustration by Alexander Shatov, licensed with the Unsplash License]
Let's talk about some terms that come up frequently with online information. Fake news, misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation are different terms related to deceptive and unreliable information sources. While these are more common online, there are also sources of fake news in popular media, news stations, and print sources.
Fake news is a broad term that refers to completely false information presented as if it’s true. These stories are often designed to look like real news, with catchy headlines and images, but they’re deceptive in some fashion. Fake News is a popular catch-all term that includes different types of misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation.
Misinformation is information that is incorrect but not meant to deceive.
Most people have accidentally shared misinformation at some point. Misinformation is incorrect but not shared with the intent to cause harm. This happens when someone believes something that is incorrect and shares it with other people.
- Example 1: Something you've believed for ages, but later found out was incorrect. Did you ever share this inaccurate info with someone?
- Example 2: Accidentally misquoting a source of information.
Disinformation is information that is purposefully inaccurate.
Disinformation includes any information that is intentionally inaccurate. This occurs when anyone knowingly shares information that is not correct.
- Example 1: Misleading news articles trying to make you take a side on an issue.
- Example 2: A statistical chart that has rising data lines that don't match the values provided below it.
Malinformation is information that is accurate, but used in a way to manipulate someone or cause harm.
Malinformation is correct information shared with harmful intentions. It might be based on fact but it's shared wit hthe intent to cause damage, invade someone's privacy, or manipulate people's emotions. For example, sharing someone's personal information online could cause them embarassment.
- Example 1: Providing crime statistics in an exaggerated way that make them seem high, without adding the context that they've actually gone down compared to prior years or other locations.
- Example 2: Leaking someone's medical information to embarrass them.
Diagram: Venn Diagram on Falseness and Intent to Harm
[Misinformation Venn Diagram by Daniel Wilson, CC BY-NC 4.0]
Professor Claire Wardle of Brown University has identified seven types of mis- and disinformation (Wardle).
- Satire or Parody. No intention to cause harm but has potential to fool. (The Onion)
- False Connection. When headlines, visuals, or captions don't support the content.
- Misleading Content. Misleading use of information to imply or suggest something the content doesn't say.
- False Context. When genuine content is shared with false contextual information.
- Imposter Content. When content pretends to come from a legitimate source, but does not. Such as quoting something that someone else never said.
- Manipulated Content. When genuine information or imagery is manipulated to deceive. Presenting images or data in a misleading way.
- Fabricated Content. New content is 100 percent false, designed to deceive and do harm.
Sources
- Wardle, Claire. "Understanding Information Disorder." web.archive.org. October 9, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20241009...tion-disorder/. Accessed October 30, 2024.