Blog

Information Silos

Now might be a good time to review your news media diet. Strive to maintain balanced, well rounded consumption. Check out allsides.com to see a comparison of headlines on the same subject from various media organizations across the political spectrum.

News bias is found not only in the narrative slant around the facts of a news article, but in the current events media companies choose to publish. Check out groundnews.com to see at a glance which issues are covered more by the politically left, right, or center. Scroll down the homepage to “Blindspots” for an interesting look at who is choosing what to be published.

Information silos driven by algorithms based on preferences are a real thing! We become blind to a steady diet of one sided news because we like it. It is comfortable and we agree with it.

Maybe what we think we know is only half the story…..

Amateur Sleuths Spread Misinfo about Guthrie Case

Armchair detectives on social media love to dig into true crime cases – but sometimes their theorizing spreads confusion, falsehoods and harm.

  • Guthrie case: Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of Today show host Savannah Guthrie, went missing from her Tuscon, Arizona, home on Feb. 1. Since then, true crime fanatics have flooded online spaces with speculation about the case — implicating innocent people and compromising the investigation, officials said.
  • Not so simple: Amateur sleuths lack training and don’t have all the facts of the investigation, but that hasn’t stopped them from trying to solve this case in real time. Some are also profiting from it, racking up engagement and followers online as they spread misinformation and inspire baseless tips that waste investigators’ time.
  • Real impact: After some online commenters accused members of the Guthrie family of the abduction, the local sheriff’s office released a statement clearing them as suspects. 
  • Resource: “Conspiratorial Thinking” (Checkology)

Rumor Guard

Here is a link to The News Literacy Project’s Rumor Guard. This is just one example of the many resources you can find within the News Literacy Project. You can sign up to have this project delivered to your inbox. Remember to consider the source and look for other clues of misinformation when evaluating a news source. Avoid falling into a “rabbit hole” by keeping your emotions in check and using critical thinking when consuming news.

Life After Meta Ends Fact Checking

Since Meta has ended fact checking on it social media sites, it becomes the consumer’s responsibility to discern fact from fiction. Remember – anyone can post just about anything. I don’t personally EVER use social media to get my news. It is fun and beneficial in many ways, such as keeping in touch with friends and family, but not for getting credible news unless there is a link to a reliable source for the story.

Here is part of the response from The News Literacy Project:

Our experts have been speaking out about this topic.

Here’s what Dan Evon, lead writer for RumorGuard®, said in an article published by the Associated Press and widely distributed:

Candid photo of Dan Evon, smiling and facing forward, looking towards the camera.

“Mark Zuckerberg’s decision to end Meta’s fact-checking program not only removes a valuable resource for users, but it also provides an air of legitimacy to a popular disinformation narrative: That fact-checking is politically biased. Fact-checkers provide a valuable service by adding important context to the viral claims that mislead and misinform millions of users on Meta.”

For more on this important topic, read News Literacy Project’s full response.

We’re also covering this subject on social media – view our video here. (Make sure to follow us to stay up to date with more content like this!)

In the wake of this development, NLP remains strongly committed to its mission to further news literacy education. We are thankful for your support at the start of this new year.

For a future founded on facts,
The News Literacy Project

Disinformation Disguised as “Breaking News”

“Doing real journalism is difficult and takes time. But producing falsehoods of almost any sort is comparatively easy and quick. But of all the tactics people use to spread misinformation, pushing out evidence-free assertions might require the least amount of effort. While this tactic is popular, it is also easy to spot and debunk. Just remember to check your sources, look for evidence and slow your scroll on social media to allow time for credible information to emerge.” Newslit.org October 10, 2024. Also check out the Misinformation Dashboard. Better yet, subscribe to the News Literacy Project Newsletter!

Immigrants Eating Pets?

A neighbor’s daughter’s friend and a post on Facebook causes chaos when people believe without questioning. Click here for a link to the News Literacy website article about this claim. This is another reminder to consume social media posts with caution and skepticism until you can confirm facts from other more credible sources that are non partisan.

Tool to Fight Disinformation Shuttered by Meta

Meta has decided to take down a tool to fight disinformation. What could be the reason for this? How does losing this tool help us to know truth from fiction? Read the article from NPR here and then do something to let Meta know this is not okay! This is a non partisan site but I think we can all agree that truth is important.