The Rapid Rise of Misinformation in the Media
Alexandra Gore | November 1, 2023
Person-to-person communication is easier now than ever before. Advances in technology have opened a door for humans to know everything about the world across time zones. While this may improve political awareness, misinformation and the dangers that come with it are complicating access to accurate information.
It is important to note that misinformation is not created with the intent to deceive. Disinformation is the term used for false information released with the intention to deceive and harm. However, while the intentions may be innocent, misinformation can create dangerous perceptions of an event or group of people.
Biased subjectivity in the media has existed for centuries. In the nineteenth century, most newspapers were not expected to relay factual information but were explicitly linked to the publisher’s political party. Historians believe that this was the only effective way to spread accurate information — people needed to be convinced that issues were important enough to act upon.
Today, misinformation in the news is still prevalent, but it has found its way to younger demographics through digital social media posts — including infographics as a way to spread information on topics and current events. A 2020 study conducted by Pew Research Study found that more than eight in ten Americans get their news from digital devices.
Infographics are simple and dissectable, often displaying an array of colorful fonts and images to gain the attention of the reader. This format is often forced to oversimplify the issues they attempt to address, as the Instagram format allows for only ten slides per post.
While many mainstream news media sources fact-check their work before publishing to avoid misinformation, Instagram does not follow these same practices for its posts. The attractive aesthetics combined with fast-faced reposting pose risks for the quick spread of misinformation and leave the reader personally responsible for determining the credibility of the post.
While posts are not often quickly verifiable, social media users are encouraged to flag posts that they believe may relay false or dangerous information. From September to November 2020, 57.7 percent of all misinformation flagged by Instagram contained content about the coronavirus.
The use of propaganda during a crisis is one of the most effective methods of influencing groups of people, most evident in the Nazi’s use of propaganda during World War II. An evident growing trend of governments worldwide using social media propaganda to shape their narrative further complicates the search for credible information. For example, paid social media messages posted by the Israeli Foreign Affairs Ministry quickly led users to form opinions on the political matter without being sure of where or whom the material came from.
Influencing people to believe false and potentially dangerous information is not the only risk of misinformation in the media. According to the National Institute of Health, misinformation has been proven to further aggravate complex emotional situations. A study conducted in 2020 found that over 70% of Chinese healthcare workers reported psychological distress with symptoms including anxiety, depression and insomnia. These emotional effects are heightened by conflict, confusion and conspiracy theories circulating the news media and online.
Also during the COVID-19 pandemic, health complications and the death of an Arizona man resulted from ingesting cleansing products after former President Donald Trump suggested the possibility of an “injection” of disinfectant into a person infected with the virus to be used as a deterrent.
According to the Pew Research Center, nearly a quarter of Americans say they have shared fake political news online, whether they were aware of its fabricated nature at the time or not.
According to 18 U.S. Code § 35, the United States only recognizes misinformation as a crime in cases of hoaxes, such as bomb threats. The First Amendment protects most cases of spreading false information by claiming freedom of speech and the press. A defamation lawsuit may be called to action if misinformation is spread that can tarnish an individual’s reputation, but instances of misinformation being spread in the media are rarely considered illegal or unconstitutional.
Although misinformation can be hard to catch, some steps can be taken to catch false information in the media. Researching the author, checking published dates and reading beyond the headlines are among some of the steps that the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions suggest users take to spot fake news.
