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Fixing Fake News

posted by on Saturday January 07 2017, @02:07AM   Printer-friendly
from the let's-keep-the-onion dept.

BK writes:

I found an interesting article on fivethirtyeight.com about fake news and how to address it. It's a long article but worth the read. This bit is near the end:

Media outlets keep trying to debunk fake news. This won't work, particularly for readers who have already decided that the traditional press is fake news — and, fair or not, partisan. Research suggests that the more partisan a topic, the more likely people who identify strongly with one side will double down on their argument even if they are presented with facts that counter it.

Maybe, instead, the media should do a better job of distinguishing real news from fake news, to regain readers' trust. Click-based advertising has left us adrift in a sea of inaccurate, sensational headlines, even at legitimate news outlets; this makes it easier for dramatic fake news headlines to survive. Aggregation has us spreading stories with no original research or corroboration, and it makes everyone look bad when outlets fall for fake bait. Over the holidays, a heartwarming story about a Santa Claus who visited a child's deathbed went viral. Three days later, the Knoxville News Sentinel, which originally published the story, retracted it, but not before it had spread to CNN, Fox, USA Today and more.

Maybe the news should stop trying so hard to entertain.

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  • (Score: 2) by fritsd on Saturday January 07 2017, @03:30PM

    by fritsd (4586) on Saturday January 07 2017, @03:30PM (#450740) Journal

    Hey people, I've found something right on topic about last newyear: you can practice your German muscles on it: and editorial from the Ruhr Nachrichten (Dortmund)


    Wenn gefühlte Wahrheit Wahrheit wird (in German)

    "Das hat wiederum Auswirkungen auf die politische Kultur eines Landes, also dem Muster, wie Wertvorstellungen und individuelle Orientierungen in dem Land verteilt sind. Nun ist schon viel über postfaktische Zeiten berichtet worden. Die gefühlte Wahrheit wird durch Verhaltensänderung zur Wahrheit. Fakenews, also die gezielte Verbreitung von Nachrichten in falschen Zusammenhängen oder gar der Unwahrheit, begünstigen diese Entwicklungen. Das sollte jedem Nachrichtenkonsumenten bewusst sein. Mein Rat: Stellen Sie Ihre Quellen in Frage und denken Sie nach, bevor Sie etwas verbreiten! Das bedeutet: Sie müssen auch mir nicht glauben. Aber wenn Sie diese Skepsis an den Tag legen, hat dieser Text etwas erreicht."

    WE are the Nachrichtenkonsumenten of course.

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  • (Score: 2) by fritsd on Saturday January 07 2017, @03:32PM

    by fritsd (4586) on Saturday January 07 2017, @03:32PM (#450744) Journal

    dammit missed the link


    Wenn gefühlte Wahrheit Wahrheit wird

    wtf is wrong with the url http://www.ruhrnachrichten.de/blogs/dortmund/44137-Dortmund~blogs/Wenn-gefuehlte-Wahrheit-Wahrheit-wird;art145865,3187445 [ruhrnachrichten.de]
    ok go to http://www.ruhrnachrichten.de/staedte/dortmund/ [ruhrnachrichten.de] and find the editorial by Dennis Werner