Nowadays, technology becomes one of best methods for students to get information. However, the more development of the technology, the more sources for students to be confused. What is the fake news? How can we spot the fake news’students are the majority of getting online information. They get more bad consequences from the fake news than the others. Therefore, learning how to know the trustworthy sources is one of the best keys to help students strengthen their knowledge and improve their writing.
Fake news is unreliable or untrue information. It can be misinformation, hoaxes or junk news. There are a lot of sources of news, for example: newspapers, books, television, and in the internet. Without any doubt, books are the best material of reliable information. However, the internet recently become the majority sources of information. The internet makes it more convenient, easier for us to read and look something up online. In order to tell the fake news on the internet, students need to follow these steps: check the author and check the purpose the news.
Before using the information of any sources, we need to do a quick check on author or the organization who created it. After knowing the name of the author or the organization, we can determine the sources are trustworthy or not by searching on the internet. We should read widely, not focus only one source. Moreover, we can search an online library database to see more about the author’s books or writing. There are many reliable sources from several educational and non-profit organization, for example: Center for Media Literacy (CML), Media Literacy Now, The News Literacy Project (NLP), and The Poynter Institute. We can also check the author by checking the website’s URL’s ending: .edu, .gov, and .org are more reliable than websites that end in .com, .net and the other. We should be careful with the sources being shared on social media.
After knowing the author of the news, now you can skim on the content to determine the purpose of the news. If the news has an advertising section or name a sponsor, it usually means the author is paid for it. We should be carefully with these kinds of news, because it often shows only the advantage information for the sponsor. Skimming on the content also help us to determine the news is written about the fact or sharing the author’s opinion. Moreover, checking the date of the news to check the news is true or outdated.
It is so important to verify information before using it or sharing with others. Learning how to tell a fake news not only is a key factor for our writing, but also helps us to expand our knowledge. However, it is not a simple or quick process. Checking the author and checking the purpose of the news can help us determine the reliable sources in full of the information in the internet.
Sources:
- https://www.prattlibrary.org/research/tools/index.aspx?cat=90;id=4735
- https://www.summer.harvard.edu/inside-summer/4-tips-spotting-fake-news-story
- https://libguides.pace.edu/fakenews
