Blind Leading The Blind

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Recent years have seen a rising concern about the spread of misinformation, frequently referred to as “fake news”. Casually disguised as the truth, this type of information often involves unverifiable claims by questionable sources. The use of fake news has caused many problems, undermining trust in journalism, disrupting elections and democracy, and even inciting hatred and violence.

This issue has become particularly relevant recently – as some countries have experienced an ‘infodemic’ of incorrect health advice amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. In some countries, governments were even caught enforcing censorship on matters concerning the pandemic.

In America, every professional journalist must follow a code of ethics. According to the Society of Professional Journalists, this code of ethics includes the following-- seek truth and report it, minimize harm, act independently, and be both accountable and transparent under the belief that public enlightenment is the forerunner of justice and the foundation of democracy and yet America is no stranger to fake news. Although people blame political leaders more than journalists for creating fake news and information, they put most responsibility on them to fix it.

Protestors march against fake news and misinformation. Photograph: Erik McGregor/Pacific/Barcroft

Communities across the country and even around the world have become accustomed to receiving their daily news in a variety of ways whether its on television, the radio or through articles posted on official websites. Although news outlets may be biased in their reporting based on certain political views, receiving news from stations like CNN, CBS, Fox News, etc. has shown to be one of the best ways to get trusted information and in the event that one news outlet fails to provide the public with the truth, there's always another that will make sense of the missing and/or altered information.

However, younger generations have grown accustomed to receiving their information from social media platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, Reddit, YouTube, etc. With billions of users connected to multiple forms of social media, it can be a dangerous place to receive information.

Even young adults from around the world like 16-year-old Justina M. from Belgium, agrees that "more than half of the time, we don't even know or bother to find out where or from who the story even came from, leaving us more confused with all the different versions of the same story" (Penpal Schools, 2020).

(Thomas Trutschel/Getty)

A 2019 survey published by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Opinion Research and USA Facts found that only 11% of Americans say they trust information about government they see on social media and nearly two-thirds said they have little to no trust in government news on the public platforms. Another 2019 study done by the Pew Research Center, reveals that people are more worried today about fake news because it's undermining public trust in key institutions, like government and the media. The study also revealed that Americans identify fake news as being a bigger issue for the country than terrorism, illegal immigration, racism and even sexism.

While awareness about misinformation on social media has increased in recent years, popular news outlets such as the ones previously mentioned have taken to social media as a way to reach and appeal to the mass majority of people who either do not have access to or choose not to seek credible information in the traditional way via radio, television, newspapers, news magazines, etc. This has made it easier for individuals to have access credible information around the clock.

Nevertheless, false information continues to be pushed out into the media every minute of every day. This information should always be questioned and either proven or debunked through further research by the individual reader. When individuals fail to verify newly received information before passing it on, the result quickly spirals into a simple case of the blind leading the blind. Therefore, it is highly beneficial for individuals to take information provided by the media lightly until proven otherwise.

For more information on how to identify fake news, visit How To Self-Check The News