It is considered the worst pandemic in fashion history. I’m not talking about COVID-19, I think it also applies here, I’m talking about the dangerous, disturbing and even fatal spread of online misinformation.
You can’t spend on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, to call a few, without seeing examples everywhere, of other people posting old images as if they were news and existing data to the maximum of notorious pins and trolls online.
No matter how much large-generation corporations and others are committed to containing this poisonous spread, it’s up to us to do something.
We’ve all done it – we detect that title, photo or emotional message from someone’s uncle or “friend” that emphasizes everything we already think and feel – and have conveyed it. It’s human nature. Add a pandemic, a lack of confidence in authority figures, emotions of concern and lack of – while we’re stuck at home, and we have the best typhoon for an infodemia.
“The environment created through the pandemic has engendered a multitude of lies even when the facts have become a matter of life and death,” writes the authors of a new Psychological Science article that investigated why other people and disseminated false data about COVID-19. “In the case of COVID-19, this erroneous data requires a lot of bureaucracy, from conspiracy theories about the creation of the virus as a biological weapon in China to claims that coconut oil kills the virus.
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The tempting solution is not to combat or dishonor others on social media, or to direct others to the truth. “Reverting to those who buy fake data is not as undeniable as breaking epistemic bubbles (sic) with facts,” Christopher Robichaud, senior professor of ethics and public policy at Harvard Kennedy School at the Harvard Gazette, recently said.
I took a look at the Facebook feed of one of my friends from years of training and 16 times shared a theory of the conspiracy debated, a reasonable fake video or a lie with political load.
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He is one of the few people I have not “abandoned” yet because of incorrect information, because I know that he does not knowingly or out of malice, and I am cautiously sure that elbows that do not judge (as this column) will flatten that curve of confusion.
With this purpose in mind, here’s what we know so far that it’s true, and what we don’t know, followed by recommendations on how to make a difference.
Five truths about COVID-19:
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Five lies about COVID-19:
Unless you’re a true expert in COVID-19, you’re probably not the ultimate productive user to know if the latest accusations are objectively correct. Here are five professional tips to help you know what’s true, what isn’t, and, more importantly, how not to be the super-announcer of all this highly contagious misinformation.
1. Slow down
A lot of fake news spreads when you have an emotional reaction to a title, photo or video, and then you percent it, retwite it or spend it knowing where it comes from.
I have followed a new rule that I simply do not get my news and data from Facebook, or any other social networking site, unless I know and accept as true with the professional journalist who stores them. This is a fundamental skill that I myself have acquired as an experienced journalist: check the source. Where does the data come from and how reliable is it?
2. Check the source
It is the percentage of data you are about to get from a verifiable, maintained and controlled account through a genuine user (look for genuine images and accounts that are more than a few months old). Can you search for the user or organization on Google? Are percentage messages consistent? What makes this the subject expert?
If the source is a means of news, ask yourself a few questions: Have you ever heard of this medium? Is there a website, news search engines or any way to contact them? There is even a browser add-on called NewsGuard that you can use here. Evaluates more than 4,000 news Websites based on your accurate news release reports.
3. Check the facts
No, YouTube videos are not “facts” and being your most productive fact checker may not take you long.
Facebook gives you tips for detecting incorrect information (which unfortunately looks a lot like fitness warnings about cigarettes), but includes fact verification through credible third-party news organizations, adding USA TODAY, Agence France-Presse (AFP), Reuters, Politifact, Factcheck.org, Associated Press and others.
Snopes is another reference for independent and nonpartisan critics of urban legends, rumours and false and savage data. If the data catches your eye, start with one or some of those data verification sites to determine the legitimacy of the report.
4. Learn S-I-F-T
Mike Caulfield, a virtual literacy expert at Washington State University in Vancouver, is committed to fighting misguided data online. At the heart of his extensive studies and education around “data hygiene” is the acronym SIFT, which means: Stop, Investigate, Search and Track. We’ve covered similar data here, however, Caulfield teaches some cool moves, such as overpass, cross-checking with data resources, and magical use of keyboard shortcuts, Ctrl-F (Cmd-F on a Mac), to avoid being sucked through a “false framing”.
If you’re not doing anything else after reading this, visit Caulfield’s Infodemic online page and be informed of the fundamental skills yourself.
5. Correct with caution
When I first read something outrageously expressed as a “fact,” I wrote the comment: “This is the ultimate ignorance I’ve read online.” It didn’t happen well. Most other people don’t like to be corrected, let alone potentially embarrassed, especially through their own social media posts.
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There is a hint of fact in the disinformation messages, so experts say it is better to locate the fact and then show (and say) why the message itself is not accurate. But stick to the facts. Research shows that other people are less likely to continue to give incorrect information rates when someone calls them, with fact check.
I came to leave a comment: “Now that you know it’s wrong, the moral thing is to erase it. Are you going to do it?” So far, everyone has done it, however passive-aggressive it may seem, it works, and I will have a more infomic spread overnight.
Jennifer Jolly is an Emmy Award-winning generation contributor. Email [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @JenniferJolly.