Fake News, Disinformation and Media Manipulation:
How to Defend Against Them
Walt Handelsman - The Advocate, 2017
Welcome to the LSU Manship School's Resource Guide to Fake News
Fake news, or purposely false stories masquerading as news, have infected American information flows for years. What is the source of the problem? What threat does it pose to our democracy? What can be done about it during the COVID-19 pandemic?
We cannot answer all those questions but this guide is a curated collection of the leading research, tips and news reports on fake news, deep fake videos and the threats posed to our nation's information flows and elections.
With the sheer amount of info circulating right now, it’s easy to mistake fact and fiction. View a list of prominent rumors about the George Floyd and Black Lives Matter protests, debunked, fact-checked, and explained.
Learn about "The Internet Trust Tool" NewsGuard, a browser extension and iOS/Android app that rates news sites on their credibility and transparency. NewsGuard is an invaluable tool for spotting fake or misleading news posted on social media and in internet searches.
Fake news and misinformation can flourish in times of great anxiety and uncertainty.
To learn about how misinformation and rumors can spread, please visit resources on rumors and misinformation.
To learn about coronavirus-related misinformation, visit COVID-19 page.
Test Your Media Literacy Skills!
Can you go 6 for 6?
Which social media platform currently is trying to maintain a hardline "free speech" approach regarding political content?
a. Twitter
b. Facebook
c. YouTube
d. Myspace
b. Facebook
"Zuckerberg has defended Facebook’s commitment to free expression, even as competitors take steps to address hate and disinformation on their platforms."
Which governmental entities have passed (or are considering) media literacy education? Select all that apply.
a. The United Kingdom
b. Louisiana
c. California
d. Washington state
a, The UK, c. California & d. Washington
In 2019, The United Kingdom’s cabinet secretaries announced that they would provide guidance for teaching media literacy to their students. California passed a law which requires media literacy resources to be available to students. Washington state is considering a media literacy bill, and Massachusetts successfully passed a bill so students can better “access, analyze and evaluate all types of media,” according to Media Literacy Now.
Which platforms said they would take down coronavirus misinformation that is dangerous to public health?
a. Facebook
b. Twitter
c. YouTube
d. All of the Above
d. All of the Above
The public health risks associated with virus misinformation were so high that Google, Twitter and Facebook all announced that they would remove dangerous content about COVID-19, a move that showed their willingness to moderate at least some political content.
What percentage of Americans believe that social media does more to spread lies and falsehoods?
a. 18%
b. 27%
c. 55%
d. 93%
c. 55%
A 2019 NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll found that 55 percent of Americans believed social media does more to spread lies and falsehoods versus only 31 percent who said it does more to spread news and information.
There is evidence that bot accounts account for over half of the Twitter conversation on some political topics?
a. True
b. False
Are social media companies technology companies or media companies?
a. Social Media companies
b. Media Companies
c. It’s Confusing!
c. It's Confusing!
Social media companies want to remain immune from legal consequences for user-generated content. They do not want to be treated like a newspaper. Section 230 of The 1996 Communications Decency Act shields third-party platforms (Facebook, Twitter and Instagram) from liability for user-generated content. Platforms, intent to keep the law unchanged, now face pressure from both political parties that want to change Section 230.
"Deepfakes" and Democracy
See Boston University Law Prof. Danielle Citron's TED Talk on how deepfake videos undermine truth and threaten democracy and privacy. To learn more about what deepfakes are and the threat they pose, check out our deepfake resources.
Are You Getting Faked Out?
Take the News Literacy Project's quiz on misinformation in the time of COVID-19, and see if you can tell fact from fiction.