Know and share the real story: How to spot fake news

How we consume news has changed.  

Over half of American adults report getting their news from social media at least sometimes, primarily drawn by its convenience and immediacy. However, while social media makes information accessible, it also raises serious concerns about accuracy and reliability. 

A lack of transparency in news gathering, inconsistent fact-checking, and unreliable source verification all contribute to the growing public skepticism of online news.

Sharing false information — whether knowingly or not — can have dangerous consequences and work against your goals. Before you advocate for causes you care about, it’s crucial that you understand how to spot fake news to avoid misleading others and protect your credibility.

The importance of fact-checking and evaluating sources

Trustworthy news relies on credible sources. Verifying the legitimacy and accuracy of content prevents harmful narratives from circulating and empowers us to make informed decisions and discuss issues with confidence.

As a petition starter or supporter, this is especially important to prevent undermining your cause and halting progress towards your goals. Including fake news in your petition can distract from the important issues that need to be addressed and deter supporters.

Well-researched petitions are more persuasive and likely to reach key decision-makers effectively, increasing the chance of success.

How to spot fake news

Before citing data and information or sharing content with others, make sure you thoroughly inspect it to filter out anything with propaganda, outdated or wrong information, satire, and baseless claims. 

Take these steps to identify the quality of your sources and information:

Read beyond the headlines

Oftentimes on social media and other digital apps, the only piece of the news you see is a headline. A study found that 75% of Facebook links users posted over three years were shared without being opened or read first. This creates problems of not understanding the whole story and increasing the risk of fake news spreading. Read the entire article to determine if the necessary details and reporting are present and everything makes sense.

Check if the news source is credible

Dig a little deeper into the news publication to ensure you can trust it. Evaluate the source’s website, including the “about” section to learn the mission of the organization and decipher whether the group behind the news has a political agenda. 

Typically, respected and established publications like The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, and NPR are credible and uphold high journalistic standards. Academic, science, health, and other professional journals are other examples that contain primary research studies and peer-reviewed articles. More unknown or niche publications can require more research to understand their legitimacy.

Verify the author

An online search of the author will reveal if the writer of the story is real, if they’ve written other pieces, and if they are an expert or experienced in their field. Look to see if they have other work published, where it was published, and the content of those articles.

Check for supporting sources

Hyperlinks to cited sources, footnotes, and reference lists are all examples of ways that sources back up research and its claims. Thoroughly checking and reading through supporting sources is integral to verifying whether the research is accurately presented. 

Confirm the date of publication

In a world where news is constantly being reshared on multiple platforms, it’s easy to overlook dates of publication and focus solely on headlines. It’s possible that an old news story makes the rounds and people mistake it for breaking news. Make sure that the information you’re citing or sharing is all still relevant and up to date.

Check your own biases

Make sure that the information you cite genuinely covers the issue you’re spotlighting in depth and doesn’t solely reinforce your viewpoint. Be thoughtful when choosing to share news and information discovered on social media. Social media platforms use algorithms to curate your feed based on the way you engage with certain content online. Recommendation algorithms provide information that it thinks you like which restricts the diversity of content it serves you and can include opinion pieces and satire. 

Check if images are real and relevant

Artificial intelligence has led to the issue of doctored images, creating a new kind of visual fake news and exacerbating the larger problem. Always check for photo credits to photographers or illustrators. You can also use Google’s reverse image search to find the source of a photo and the context and background behind it.

Verify information using fact checking sites

Consult fact-checking sites to help verify your source and if the information or topic has been flagged as misinformation or disinformation. Some helpful resources include:

• Snopes
• Politifact
• BBC Verify
• Fact Check

Check for labels

When reading an article, pay attention to how it’s labeled. Is it satire, an opinion piece, or a well-researched academic article? Or is it a reported piece written in a journalistic style? Knowing this helps you understand the purpose of the content and how much weight to give it.

Look for transparency indicators

Recent research studying how users assess the credibility of online news shows that audiences have more confidence in the credibility of sources when they can see demonstrated transparency. Those transparency details include when publications state their reporting practices, funding information, and staff and author bios on the article page or elsewhere on their website. Looking for these elements makes it easy for you to evaluate the integrity of the source and the content.

Seek news with an emphasis on diverse voices

Incorporating a variety of perspectives across backgrounds, races, religions, and ethnicities is crucial for providing a well-rounded view of any news story. Diverse sources ensure coverage from multiple angles, reducing bias and avoiding the reinforcement of stereotypes. By including a range of voices, reporting becomes more balanced and inclusive, reflecting the complexities of the issue accurately and in-depth.

Join the fight against fake news

If you’re passionate about promoting honest, trustworthy news and are concerned about fake news spreading in your community — you can take action. Start a petition to rally support and make a real difference in holding sources accountable, raising awareness, and maintaining reliable news.