It has gotten increasingly more challenging throughout the years discerning misinformation from accurate information in our modern society, particularly with the rapid technological advancements that have taken place over the course of the 21st century. Algorithmic, personalized content on our feeds combined with the rise of media conglomerates competing for our attention has led to their being more noise in the mix. The question is simple: how do we learn to filter out this noise and not become as susceptible to the misinformation that presents itself on a regular basis in our lives?
In an effort to increase my overall media literacy and combat my own susceptibility to misinformation spread primarily through digital channels, I was presented with several resources to aid in this endeavor. “RumorGuard” is a website hosted by the News Literacy Project that aims to clarify popular rumors and misconceptions that have been getting a lot of buzz on social media. What I like most about this platform is in the way it debunks these rumors; it provides sufficient context behind the rumors covered and makes the user feel like they’re training their brain to better spot these misinformation tactics with each excerpt. “Fake It To Make It” is a web-based game that shifts the perspective, putting the user in the driver’s seat of copying and planting fake news articles they find in order to direct traffic to their website and ultimately generate a profit. I was enthralled by the level of customization and detail poured into the simulation, which made it feel like that much more immersive. Both of these resources employ different strategies, yet they both have the same goal to increase the user’s cognitive ability to be able to spot misinformation and fake news and increase their general media literacy awareness.
A Deep Dive Into RumorGuard:
Upon visiting the website, the user is greeted with a trending headline with some sort of falsified or inaccurate information; there is a synopsis of the claim below. The article title I saw when visiting for the website for the first time was, “Fake Apology from CEO circulates after US Open hat controversy”. I remember seeing something like this in my feed from a few days ago, but never bothered to look too much into it. I remember thinking to myself it was probably another incident similar to the CEO caught cheating on his wife with one of his employees at a Coldplay concert that happened a few months prior.
As I scrolled down the page, I was greeted with three main sections. The first section established a “quick look” at the facts of the article, debunking certain claims and verifying others present in the story. It’s worth noting on the particular article I read about the CEO, the only fabrication present in the story was the supposed apology statement put out by the CEO stating, “life is first come, first served”. Since then, the CEO Piotr Szczerek issued an official apology for his actions of snatching the hat, while also denying that alleged statement. To the right of these facts are the key takeaways from the fake article. The takeaway point that resonated with me the most in this specific post was recognizing emotional triggers. We as humans are innately emotional beings. While this side of our nature has its strengths, it can also be preyed upon by ill-intentioned people seeking to manipulate others for their gain, whatever their reasons may be (money, seeking controversy/chaos, et cetera).
If we scroll further down the page, we come across my favorite section: the 5 credibility factors. The factors are authenticity, source, evidence, context, and reasoning. RumorGuard tests the credibility of each fake news article they post through the lens of these five categories. What I appreciate about this section is how easy to understand it is, while providing external links to learn more about the individual factors. For the aforementioned CEO article, it failed three of the five credibility factors:authenticity, source, and evidence. While it seems incredibly rudimentary, becoming aware of these five factors has been a game-changer for me when reflecting upon the legitimacy of news articles I come across on a regular basis. In essence, it provides a checklist I can quickly run through to verify the validity of the claims expressed in news media.
The last section expands upon the credibility factors by providing the techniques one can utilize in order to confirm if the claims of a given article are true or fake. I can admire the dedication this website has for promoting a culture of media literacy education by providing PDF resources and lessons to teach its users how to detect misinformation and fake news easily.
A Deep Dive Into Fake It To Make It:
Upon loading into this game for the first time, I was instructed to create a profile and it explained that the objective was to make as much money as possible by copying articles and planting them into targeted social media groups. While I took to the premise quickly, I fear I definitely underestimated the sheer difficulty of creating engagement. I appreciate how streamlined and easy-to-understand the interface was for this game, as it made navigating through the different channels (dashboard/copy article/plant article) incredibly seamless. My initial strategy going into the game was to max out the $50 I was given at the start of the game in an effort to create a website that appeared credible. The approach I took the articles I selected to copy was go on the offense with controversial, political, and polarizing articles, while sprinkling in some “sensational and happy” articles in the mix as to test which would be more effective. Sure enough, my strategy of playing into political controversy paid more than the happy content I copied and planted into the groups. While I was happy with the initial results of my strategy paying off, I noticed my credibility was not increasing, which presented an issue for long-term profits and growth. I was focused on trying to make as most money as fast as possible in the game that I sacrificed the integrity and credibility of my site.
If I were to play this game again, I would shift my strategy to establish my credibility and building an audience first, even if it meant sacrificing profits for the first couple months. The strategy I employed my first go-around utilized my prior knowledge of people liking to stay in their echo chambers and sparking outrage within those circles, all while leaning into their confirmation bias. While I still think this is a respectable strategy that can see great success, I am convinced it is a mid-end game play in order to generate the most profit. This game has certainly given me a deeper understanding for the various tactics advertisers and publishers of sketchy misinformation media websites, whether independent or apart of a large-scale company, utilize in order to maximize the amount of traffic on their website. Recognizing these tactics will help me going forward in being able to distinguish fake news easier.
What I appreciate about both of these resources is just how accessible and user-friendly they aim to make their services. My only regret is not learning about these websites earlier, as I feel like they could have substantially improved my overall media literacy awareness and ability to recognize fake news. In a world where it can feel intimidating not knowing what news sources to trust, as perpetual noise in our media ecosystem contribute towards making it an increasingly daunting task, it makes me really happy knowing there are services out there actively helping humanity learn strategies to combat the fake news epidemic.