![](\"http:\/\/i2.cdn.turner.com\/cnn\/dam\/assets\/161031214334-01-fake-news-top-tease.jpg\")
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(CNN)<\/cite>Only because it’s on the internet doesn’t make it true<\/strong>. It seems so simple, but if everyone knew this, Facebook and Google wouldn’t have to pull fake news sites out of their advertising algorithms, and people wouldn’t breathlessly share stories claiming Donald Trump was a secret lizard person or Hillary Clinton was an android in a pants suit. <\/p>\n \n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" (CNN)Only because it’s on the internet doesn’t make it true. It seems so simple, but if everyone knew this, Facebook and Google wouldn’t have to pull fake news sites out of their advertising algorithms, and people wouldn’t breathlessly share stories claiming Donald Trump was a secret lizard person or Hillary Clinton was an android in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[52],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3947","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-technology"],"yoast_head":"\nIt doesn’t have to be like this. are fake news actually quite easy to spot<\/strong> – if you know how. Consider this your new guide to media literacy.<\/p>\n\nNOTE: In compiling this, we sought input from two communications experts: <\/em>dr Melissa Zimdars<\/em>Associate Professor at Merrimack College in Massachusetts<\/em> its dynamics <\/em>List of unreliable news sites<\/em><\/strong> <\/em><\/strong>has gone viral, and <\/em>Alexios Manzarlis<\/em>the head of <\/em>International Fact Check Network<\/em><\/strong> at the Pointer Institute. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n1. Is the story coming from a foreign URL?<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
\nsays Zimdars Sites with strange suffixes<\/strong> like “.co” or “.su” or hosted by third-party platforms like WordPress should raise a red flag. Some fake sites, like National Report, have legitimate-sounding if not overly generic names that can easily fool people on social sites. For example, several fake reports from abcnews.com.co went viral before being debunked, including a June article that claimed President Obama had signed an executive order banning the sale of assault weapons. <\/p>\n\n2. Does the headline match the information in the article? <\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
\nMantzarlis says one of the main reasons fake news spreads on Facebook is that people are drawn to a headline and Don’t click through<\/strong>. <\/p>\nJust this week, several shady organizations circulated a story about Pepsi CEO Indra Nooyi. \u201cPepsi STOCK crashes after CEO tells Trump supporters to do business elsewhere,\u201d trumpeted one such headline. <\/p>\nHowever, the articles themselves didn’t include that quote or any evidence that Pepsi stock posted a significant decline (it didn’t). Nooyi made recorded comments on Trump’s election but was never quoted as telling his supporters to “take business elsewhere.”<\/p>\n\n3. Is it a recent story or an old story that has been reinterpreted? <\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
\nSometimes legitimate messages can be twisted and revived<\/strong> Years after the fact to create a false conflation of events. Mantzarlis recalls an erroneous story that actually quoted a legitimate message from CNNMoney. <\/p>\nA blog called Viral Liberty recently reported that Ford had shifted production of some of its trucks from Mexico to Ohio because of Donald Trump’s election victory. The story quickly ignited online – after all, it seemed like a big win for the domestic auto industry. <\/p>\nIt turns out that Ford moved some production from Mexico to Ohio in 2015. It had nothing at all to do with the election results. <\/p>\n\n4. Are the supporting videos or photos verifiable? <\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
\nPhotos and videos can also be taken out of context<\/strong> to support a false claim. In April, the liberal website Occupy Democrats published a video allegedly showing a young woman being removed from a bathroom by police because she did not look feminine enough. This was at the height of the HB2 “bathroom bill” controversy, and the article clearly linked the two. “IT’S BEGINNING” was the headline. <\/p>\nHowever, the video did not include a date or evidence that it was filmed in North Carolina, where the “bathroom bill” was set to be passed. <\/p>\nIn fact, according to Snopes, the same video was posted to a Facebook page in 2015, meaning it took place before the HB2 controversy. <\/p>\n\n5. Does the article cite primary sources? <\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
\nNot only political news can be fake. Now8News is one of the most notorious fake-but-real-looking websites, specializing in the kind of weird news that often goes viral. <\/p>\nOne such article claims Coca-Cola recalled Dasani water bottles after a “clear parasite” was found in the water. There was even an accompanying icky picture that supposedly showed the parasite, although some simple Googling reveals it’s most likely a photo of a young eel. <\/p>\nRegardless, the article had no statement or claim by any company<\/strong>. That would of course be a big story. Dasani or a number of consumer advocacy groups would issue statements or press releases about this, right? There are none to be found – because the story is 100% fake. <\/p>\n\n6. Does the story contain quotes and are they understandable?<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
\nA popular meme from liberal Facebook groups includes a fake quote from Donald Trump, allegedly from a 1998 People Magazine interview:<\/p>\n“If I were to run, I would run as a Republican. They are the dumbest constituency in the country. They believe everything Fox News says. I could lie and they would still eat it would be great.<\/em>“<\/p>\nThis one is easy to debunk if you take even a moment to think about it: People.com has extensive archives, and that Quote is nowhere to be found<\/strong> in them. <\/p>\n\n7. Is it the only medium reporting the story? <\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
During this election season, Pope Francis has been caught up in three super viral and completely false stories. According to various (fake) websites, the Pope endorsed three US presidential candidates: First, Bernie Sanders, as \u201creported\u201d by National Report and USAToday.com.co. Then Donald Trump, as \u201creported\u201d by fake news site WTOE 5 News. Finally, another fake news site, KYPO6.com, reported that he had endorsed Hillary Clinton!<\/p>\nIn all of these cases, subsequent reports all circled back to the fake ones. It’s always good to tracing a story back to its original source<\/strong>and if you find yourself in a loop \u2014 or if they all lead back to the same shady page \u2014 you have reason to doubt. <\/p>\n\n8. Is your own bias getting in the way?<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
\nsay both Zimdars and Mantzarlis Confirmation bias is an important reason<\/strong> Fake news spreads as they do. Some of this is built into Facebook’s algorithm – the more you like or interact with a particular interest, the more Facebook will show you what’s related to that interest.<\/p>\nIf you hate Donald Trump, you are more likely to believe negative stories about Donald Trump are true, even when there is no evidence. <\/p>\n“We look for information that already fits our established beliefs,” says Zimdars. “If we come into contact with information that we don’t agree with, that can still validate us because we will try to find errors.”<\/p>\nSo if you come across an outrageous article that feels \u201ctoo good to be true\u201d, beware: it just might be. <\/p>\n\n\n9. Has it been debunked by a reputable fact-checking organization? <\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
\nDid you know that there actually is an international fact-checking network (run by Mantzarlis)? And that there is a code of principles? The Code includes, among other things, the ideals of impartiality and transparency. Websites such as FactCheck.org, Snopes and Politifact adhere to this Code. So if you see a debunking there, you’ll know You get the real deal<\/strong>. View the full list here. <\/p>\n\n\n10. Is the host on a list of unreliable news sites? <\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
\nThat’s where Things can get difficult<\/strong>. There is obviously a big difference between “misleading” news, which is usually based on fact, and “fake” news, which is just fiction disguised as fact. The now-famous list of zimdars includes both types, as well as satire and sites that capitalize on clickbait headlines. Snopes also keeps a list. <\/p>\nWhile Zimdars is happy that her list has received so much attention, she also warns that writing off some of the sites entirely as “fake” is not accurate. “I want to make sure this list doesn’t do the ultimate goal a great disservice,” she says. “It’s interesting that some of the headlines [about my list] are just as hyperbolic as those I analyze.” <\/p>\n