We could go on a long, drawn-out, tired rant about the fallacies of social media, but as members of a school newspaper who value journalism, we want to shed light on one issue surrounding social sites in particular — the spread of fake news through the sharing of legitimate but outdated articles.
The definition of fake news is fluid, and there are several characteristics that could qualify an article as fraudulent news. One of the most important attributes in determining the validity of news is the date. That one small detail under the bolded headline has an impact on how relevant the article is. Even if the topic the article discusses is hot news now, the information could be outdated if you’re circulating an article from 2012 five years later in 2017.
More control is being handed over to you. Through social media sites, you are able to share articles that interest you with your family and friends. The responsibility of posting content also rests on the shoulders of those who have social media accounts. The role of consumers and producers of news media is becoming increasingly important as those with social media accounts are becoming a part of a trend known as “citizen journalism.”
The internet is free and the First Amendment is still enforced, so people can post whatever they want, whenever they want. The content is not being necessarily being regulated, the captions are not being reviewed and the dates are not being paid attention to.
An article with a seemingly relevant headline gets circulated and shared countless times, prompting excitement on social sites, which is exactly what these sites desire.
Social media sites want you to engage with their platforms so they get revenue from advertisements, meaning they’re not likely to file out older news articles with their algorithms if those headlines are likely to grab your attention.
Oftentimes, the date is completely ignored over the excitement of the headline. Amid the hashtags and trending topics, there lie real issues with the actual relevancy of the article.
As a responsible observer of of news, it’s important to look beyond headlines that catch your attention and support your arguments, especially in these heated political times.
Checking for the date is the easiest way to assist in stopping the spread of fake news. It’s easy to locate, its absence is a strong indicator of the article’s reliability and it can confirm the relevance of the article.
