Fake News: Understanding Fake News

"It's no use simply telling people they have their facts wrong. To be more effective at correcting misinformation in news accounts and intentionally misleading "fake news," you need to provide a detailed counter-message with new information—and get your audience to help develop a new narrative." From Phys.org, Sept 12, 2017.

Who fact-checks the fact-checkers? A "1A" radio program produced by WAMU and distributed on NPR that aired Sept 13, 2017.

Wikipedia article that provides an extensive description of "fake news sites," including: methods, connection to the 2016 election, and a list of fake sites.

This article explains how the "echo chamber" effect can promote the spread of misinformation. From Climate Feedback, Sept 14, 2017.

A brief explanation of how "bots" are used to spread fake news and manipulate opinions. It serves as an introduction to a much larger (41 pp.) study from Indiana U.: The Spread of Low-Credibility Content by Social Bots, fourth version, May 24, 2018 (complete list of versions).

"Falsehoods almost always beat out the truth on Twitter." From The Atlantic, Mar 8, 2018, based on a study by MIT.

"Just as the environmental movement galvanized support for protecting nature, a pro-truth movement could spur popular opposition to post-truth politicians." From Scientific American, Sept 13, 2017.

"Mounting evidence suggests a lot of published research is false." This YouTube video from Veritasium, Aug 11, 2016, discusses the problems in the research process.

A useful library guide about fake news. From the University of California, Berkeley.

A library guide from Dickinson C. with helpful information and links regarding fake news, including strategies for recognizing and combating it.

Full title: "Truth Decay: An Initial Exploration of the Diminishing Role of Facts and Analysis in American Public Life." This 2018 RAND report is actually a 300+ page book. Note: You can download the ebook version for FREE! The site offers other useful information.

This article addresses the question: "Why does evidence seem to have little influence on people's beliefs, and what can be done?" From CNN, Sept 14, 2017.

See Liberal Facebook and Conservative Facebook feeds side by side for various topics. Get an idea of how Facebook posts represent different perspectives. From the Wall Street Journal.

A commentary on Facebook's attempt to solve the fake news problem. From Gizmodo, Sept 13, 2017.

Facebook now gives five organizations virtual censorship power to stop the spread of "fake news." These organizations include four nonpartisan outlets: Associate Press, FactCheck.org, Snopes, and Politifact, as well as the conservative Weekly Standard. This article describes how this system might have gone wrong. From Vox, Sept 12, 2018.

A news story from NBC News, Aug 29, 2017.

This 40 page Yale University study is referenced in the "Tagging Fake News . . ." Politico story listed below. The authors conclude: "These results suggest that the currently deployed approaches are not nearly enough to effectively undermine belief in fake news, and new (empirically supported) strategies are needed." Last revised, Dec 10, 2017.

"A Yale survey of 7,500 people shows little benefit, and possible detriments, to fact-check programs." See Implied Truth Effect: Assessing the Effect... for the actual study. From Politico, Sept 11, 2017.

Reviews details from the Mueller investigation into the Russian troll factory and the February indictment. From Wired, Feb 16, 2018.

Provides six succinct points based on recent studies regarding Russian interference in the election. From NPR, April 11, 2018.

Summarizes Russian interference in the 2016 election, as described in the indictment from the Mueller Investigation. From Wired, Feb 16, 2018

A major report from Stanford Law School that "surveyed the roles of four major online platforms in the spread of fake news beginning with the 2016 U.S. election." Published Oct 2017.

Wikipedia article describing "Internet troll" and trolling, which were part of the Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Read the legal indictment brought by the Mueller Investigation against 13 Russians and the Russian Troll Factory. Provides detailed information on the processes used.

Read the legal indictment brought by the Mueller Investigation against 12 Russians connected to the Russian military. Provides detailed information on the processes used.

Two years of coverage about the Russian attack on the 2016 election may leave you confused. This article provides an important overview and explanation of what has been learned as of Sept 20, 2018. From The New York Times.

A brief introduction to the Mueller indictment in July, including a link to the complete indictment document (PDF).

Detailed and extensive original research article on the impact of fake news articles on the 2016 election. Authors are from Princeton U., Dartmouth C., and U. of Exeter. Dated Jan 9, 2018.

An often cited research article by economic professors at New York U. and Stanford U. It covers both fake news in general and it's use and effect on the 2016 election.