What is fake news?

Fake news has been a growing topic of conversation, especially in the last four years. These words have come to mean a variety of different things including false news, misleading information, and potentially information that we do not agree with.

How can we as readers and consumers of the news find and avoid this growing use of fake news? To avoid an issue, we first have to have an understanding of what it truly is and is not. Fake news is news that’s purpose is to mislead and misinform consumers. It is not disagreeing with information and labeling it as fake news.

Consumers can avoid fake news by double checking information with other reliable news sources. Rechecking information found online is an extremely important step in providing yourself with accurate and reliable information. A popular phrase is “you can’t trust everything you read on the internet”, and this is most definitely true in today’s world.

With the spread of false information rising, we should not only check news but also things that our friends and family post. Many times, fake videos and pictures can be put out to stir up drama and tick people into spreading more false information. When it comes to fake visuals it would be best to wait until the validity can be confirmed by an expert on the matter. I have seen this firsthand when I stopped parents from sending out a post that was completely false but was designed entirely too real.

The spread of fake news needs to be fought on all levels of news and especially on the national level where first impressions may be the only impression. Trusted networks, websites, and organizations need to take up responsibility and spend more time checking the validity of sources and information before spreading the word. Of course, there will always be fake news and false information spread whether on purpose or on accident however trusted media need to do their best to stop the spread from within themselves and we as good citizens need to do the same.