Homework 10/28

As a journalism major, I have brushed upon the topic of fake news often. Further, as an avid user of social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook it is clear that fake news is very present in our lives today.

A. I can argue that fake news has been a problem for quite some time. Although the coined term ‘Fake News’ is somewhat new, the concept has been around since 1895 with ‘Yellow Journalism.’ Yellow Journalism simply has to do with propaganda and the spreading of false information to get consumers to invest. Originally, the concept of all of this began in 1895 with Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst when feuding for more attention to their papers. The ‘Yellow Kid’ was born and published in both of their papers insinuating that they would not stop the spreading of exaggerated content. This, however, is just where the concept began. Today, politicians and journalists have coined it as “Fake News” and we are seeing it more often. Back in 1895 it was more controlled opposed to today. Now with so many freelancers, user-generated platforms, Twitter, Facebook, etc., it is easier to create and spread fake news which is why I argue that it is a huge problem in the world today.

B. Defining fake news can be very tricky. To journalists, it is just negligent ethics regarding minimal fact-checking and ignorance of sources. To politicians, it is a threat and they treat it like one. To everyone else and myself, it is an inconvenience in our daily lives where we must always be wary of its presence and work harder to narrow down the truth. The way Cory Doctorow describes fake news in his article (“Fake News Is an Oracle”), can be summed up to it being inevitable if there are reasonable conspiracies out there. Doctorow suggests that it isn’t fake news that should be worked on, it’s the conspiracies themselves (Doctorow). Additionally, Doctorow describes it as, “the spread of a given hoax, or unfalsifiable statement, or truth delivered under color of falsehood, or conspiracy, or objectionable idea undeniably tells you that the idea has caught the public imagination. The fake news that doesn’t catch on may have simply been mishandled, but the fake news that does catch on has some plausibility that tells you an awful lot about the world we live in and how our fellow humans perceive that world” (Doctorow). I am agreeable with certain parts of his definition and disagree to others. I do argue that fake news is “the spread of a given hoax,” however I do not believe that it is entirely the conspiracies or illegal manners that are at fault. When it comes to news organizations, unfortunately we are seeing more of an agenda and more organizations affiliating with certain parties, which is unethical in journalism. I think that this sort of agenda-setting plays a huge role in fake news.

C. As mentioned above, unethical journalism is a huge cause in the rise of “fake news.” Of course, in 2016 we began to see more of it in headlines or on Twitter feeds. For example, Donald Trumps run for office was the peak, in my opinion, of fake news. However, this is only political fake news. We also see fake news with clickbait, advertising agendas, and more. The effects all of this has on consumers is extreme. People are either becoming less trusting of the internet or are believing everything they are reading. In my opinion, it is causing dramatic hedges between people and groups, especially political parties.

D. When it comes to diminishing the spread of fake news, I think education is key. Students, especially journalism and writing students, are being taught the basics of fake news and how to avoid it, but other than that no one is really trying to learn about it. I think if more people were taught to better decipher between fact and hoax as well as learn how to research multiple sources, then fake news could be better dealt with.

The insight I have on fake news comes from three years of journalism classes as well as being an avid user of the internet. Facebook and Twitter appear to have the most cases of fake news stories. The types that I am most familiar with are clickbait and misleading headlines. For example, some press stories or magazines involving celebrities will have a somewhat accurate story written, but the headline will include a claim that is unrelated and untrue. This type of fake news is what I think most people see on social media today.