With the proliferation of different means of communication, especially with the advent of the Internet, fake news have spread. Public opinion is more sceptical about news reports as they feel manipulated by biased information or conspiracy. How harmful are fake news in English-speaking democracies?
IInfluencing business & politics
1 Clickbait
Clickbaits are fabricated stories to push people to click and raise the advertising revenue. Famous sites such as BuzzFeed are the perfect example of clickbait with their sensationalistic vague headline writing.
If these headlines could be applied to news, it is mostly related to celebrities, as if this was the modern version of tabloids. Indeed, the sites are more interested in getting clicks (hence the name) rather than producing quality content.
2 Misinformation
While fake news are often associated to social networks, only the platform is new as propaganda has always existed in the media landscape.
key word
Fake news is the deliberate disinformation for a profit. Most often, we associate it to a political hoax usually meant to influence people’s opinion on candidates.
Fake news relies on provocative headlines and toys with people’s emotions. Most often, fake news trigger negative feelings such as outrage, anger or shock.
The main reason for creating fake news is angering people against a political opponent. This political propaganda aims at polarising people’s opinions, promoting extremism and hate speech and reducing trust in democracy.
key word
Propaganda is the use of the media and any means of communication to convey a message and influence people’s opinion.
3 Conspiracy theories
Conspiracy theories have long existed and people who believe in them often blame the media for covering up the truth.
QAnon is a movement that defends several conspiracy theories. It has dealt with issues such as Black Lives Matter, the presidential election, and the pandemic. Many of its followers participated in the deadly Capitol riot in January 2021.
IIFighting fake news
1 Social networks’ responsibility
What is being done about fake news? In the past years, social media companies have been in the spotlight. They have been pinpointed as responsible for the fast-spreading of fake news and for their lack of reactivity about it.
The BBC and other quality papers online have created a new section to counter any fake news in order to educate their readers and provide them with accurate information. Fact-checking has been put in place by most quality newspapers and media.
2 Governments’ responsibility
Trump used the term “fake news” undiscerningly during his term in order to denigrate any media that did not favour or side with him. He is responsible for this blurred line between opinion and information.
Considering the rapid-scale development of fake news in recent years, governments are starting to recognise the necessity to fight it by imposing regulations or trying to debunk fake stories.
However, the Covid-19 pandemic has unleashed a flood of misinformation. Spreading misinformation is now a criminal violation in some countries. In South Africa for instance, a new law passed in March 2020 punishes whoever spreads fake news on the pandemic up to 6 months of prison.
Zoom
Hoax, fake news and conspiracy theories
This headline (published in an online conspiracy-theorist media, the Conservative Daily Post, during the 2016 presidential campaign) is an example of political propaganda and how the phrasing of headlines can influence our perception. The fear created by the headline aims at boosting votes for Republicans.
➞ Find out more about fake news: bit.ly/PbacAMC1re_4d