- Fake news is a major problem in today’s society. It is a subtle form of manipulation through the medium of a screen. Fake news can manifest itself through news articles, social media, and even conversations or speeches. This is a problem because of the effects it has on weighted issues. For example, if there is a proposition on the education system, you are casting to vote one way or the other. If you see and believe an article that contains a fake headline and content on the education system yet you think it’s true, this could sway your vote and have serious consequences. Being aware is extremely important in the technological age because many people make a living off of fake news. Cory Doctorow states, “ ‘fake news’ is useful in one regard: 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.” This is true and is the premise of the problem- fake news makes an imagination realistic, and this is what is scary. Fake news can be seen as nonfiction storytelling, yet can seem so real and true to some people to the point where they can’t distinguish fake from real.
- Doctorow’s definition of fake news, “ ‘fake news’ is a nearly useless term, encompassing hoaxes, conspiracy theories, unfalsifiable statements, true facts spoken by people who are seeking to deceive audiences about the identity of the speaker.” This is exactly how we should define is because of that aspect of “useless.” We need to execute to the mass audience of how useless fake news it, we cannot let it determine decisions or change ideas that we have. That last portion is important as well, “….spoken by people who are seeking to deceive audiences about the identity of the speaker.” It needs to be known that the audience is being deceived by journalists and those who make money off of fake news. Fake news should be defined not by a catch phrase, or only certain news channels. We should constantly be aware that it is published in efforts to deceive an audience which can ultimately be in any news source.
- I believe the main causes of fake news are the numbers and profits journalists make from it. If journalists get shares, likes, and views on a headline that’s catchy and contains fake news, they profit. In their eyes, they’re trying to keep a job, trying to keep upper management happy, all by selling fake news. In the end, fake news is not illegal and is a form of free speech. As Soll puts it, “Fake news is not a new phenomenon. It has been around since news became a concept 500 years ago with the invention of print—a lot longer, in fact, than verified, ‘objective’ news, which emerged in force a little more than a century ago.” According to Jacob Soll, fake news has been around since the beginning of time and has evolved in the way it manifests itself; it used to be through conversation, scripts, books, and now modern media. Soll claims that fake news sells and “real news” doesn’t, which is why it’s unfortunately successful. This leads to the effects of a dystopian society that is damned from the truth and blinded by delusions. As I previously mentioned, a negative effect can be how an individual casts a vote on a ballot due to their belief in fake news articles, channels, and stories. Fake news results in beliefs founded on unsound, weak arguments and “facts.”
- I believe it is hard to find an exact solution for fake news. Realistically, we cannot punish creators of fake news because that right to free speech and press is protected. The solution is all in the reader. We have to make it apparent that fake news is everywhere and is subtle. Therefore, the reader must be conscious is everything s/he reads, hears, and watches. The reader must second guess everything and dig in deeper research to see if an idea is consistent across all media platforms.
Fake news has affected me to the point where I second-guess everything. I don’t fully believe anything my parents, my professors, or friends say about anything that has to deal with news and politics. When I take a step back, that’s a scary issue to think about. I constantly think, am I better than I am like this because it keeps me stubborn to my beliefs? Or is it worse that I’m like this because it stresses my mind out and loses trust in people’s opinions and credentials? I believe this is results from me being a registered independent in the state of California- I’m hesitant to believe or accept any form of news in which I always anticipate is fake. I truly believe fake news is everywhere and the reader should always be skeptical no matter how small or big the news story is.
