Fake News: Fake news
student guide for detecting fake news and finding reliable information
Who starts fake Covid news?
Fake News Generator: Who starts viral misinformation? - BBC News (2:44 minutes) Conspiracy theories and speculation about coronavirus have flooded social media. But who starts these rumors? And who spreads them?
Where does fake news come from?
- The (almost) complete history of 'fake news'from BBC, January 2018
- From Headline to Photograph, a Fake News Masterpiecefrom New York Times, Jan. 18, 2017
- Fake News: Lies spread faster on social media than truth doesfrom NBC, March 2018
- How is Fake News Spread? Bots, People like You, Trolls, and MicrotargetingFrom the Center for Information Technology and Society at U.C. Santa Barbara
- How Russian “Fake News” Hardened America’s DivideFrom PBS Frontline, Jan. 14, 2020
- How does "Fake News" Become News?Video from Learning for Justice, 6:39 minutes.
Test yourself! Are these stories credible?
Go deeper into misinformation
- Understanding Information DisorderFrom First Draft, 2020.
- The Psychology of MisinformationFrom First Draft, 2020.
- Countering Truth DecayA RAND Corporation Initiative to Restore the Role of Facts and Analysis in Public Life.
- It’s not just a social media problem – how search engines spread misinformationFrom The Conversation, 2021.
- Is What You See Really What You Get? Explore visual misinformationLearn about "cheap fakes" and "deep fakes." Part of the Data Detox Kit.
- News Literacy ProjectThe News Literacy Project offers resources including an e-learning platform, an app, a new podcast, shareable tips, tools and quizzes. Be sure to checkout the Rumor Guard and'Combating COVID-19 vaccine misinformation'.
Protect yourself from lies and hoaxes with these steps:
1. Slow down and take a second look! Watch for these red flags 
- strange web address (example abcnews.com.co)
- no listing of the source of the picture or information
- purposeful evoking of outrage or other strong emotions
- logic-defying pictures or text
2. Do a web search to find other sources for the story. But be careful! There may be lots of sites that link to the original fake site, so unless you find the story in a trusted site, keep investigating.
3. Look for the story in a trusted fact checking site. (See recommended fact checking tools below.)
4. Find the original source of an image through Tin Eye or a Google reverse image search.
5. Look for the story in a trusted news source. (See next tab for recommended trusted news sources.)
6. Use your own critical thinking skills. Is the story emotionally manipulative? Does this story really make sense?
6. Use your own critical thinking skills. Is the story emotionally manipulative? Does this story really make sense?
Fact checking resources
Tips for fact checking! Use the websites below to help you determine the reliability and bias of the information provided by a source. For example, look up the claims, author credentials and organization names mentioned in the source.
- SnopesThe definitive Internet reference source for urban legends, folklore, myths, rumors, and misinformation.
- AFP Fact CheckFrance-based international fact-checking service, monitoring content in languages and regions around the world.
- FactCheck.orgFactCheck.org is a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania.
- Fact CheckerFrom the Washington Post, "the truth behind the rhetoric."
- First Draft NewsTracks and evaluates information that emerges online.
- Politifact Truth-o-MeterNonpartisan that evaluates the accuracy of claims made by US political officeholders, candidates, consultants, advisers, special interest groups, and pundits.
- Science FeedbackA not-for-profit organization verifying the credibility of influential claims and media coverage that claims to be scientific, starting with the topics of climate and health.
- Truth or FictionNon-partisan “mythbusting” website about urban legends, Internet rumors, “erumors”, e-mail forwards, and other questionable pictures or stories.
Source evaluation resources
- WikipediaYes, Wikipedia! This is the first stop for professional fact checkers. Follow the links for the original sources.
- Media Bias Fact CheckResource for determining media bias through research and consumer opinions. Media Bias/Fact Check also provides occasional fact checks, original articles on media bias and breaking/important news stories.
- AllSides.comLooks at the treatment of the same current news stories and issues from media sources considered conservative, centrist, and liberal. Helps readers identify bias and avoid polarization.
7 Types of Mis- and Disinformation
From Information Disorder, Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy, Harvard Kennedy School
Donovan's 5 Key Principles of Misinformation
Tips for detecting fake news
From the International Federation of Library Associations. Click image or here to download pdf.
- Ten Questions for Fake News Detectionfrom The News Literacy Project
- Four Moves and a HabitUse the Four Moves to help discern truth when using the web. From "Web Literacy for Student Fact Checkers"
Sort Fact from Fiction Online with Lateral Reading
Read the web like a fact checker with lateral reading. From Stanford History Education Group (3:47 minutes)
