Discussion 9&10

While the digital revolution has made accessing news and information easy and nearly instantaneous, it has also allowed the spread of "fake news" to not only influence public opinion but even governmental policies and, some would argue, election results. A 2016 Pew Research Center poll found that 64 percent of American adults surveyed believed fake news was making it difficult to discern the basic facts of current news and events.

The term fake news does not refer to biased or partisan reporting. It refers to fabricated stories that deliberately mislead readers/viewers. Sometimes fake news is published for political purposes, but oftentimes it is solely for profit. Clicks and social media shares keep the fake news train rolling. First, read the following articles and take the fake news quiz before writing your reflection.

Read: Lies, Propoganda and Fake News http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20170301-lies-propaganda-and-fake-news-a-grand-challenge-of-our-age

Read: How Fake News Goes Viral case study https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/20/business/media/how-fake-news-spreads.html

Read: These Are the Three Types of Bias That Explain All the Fake News http://www.niemanlab.org/2018/06/these-are-the-three-types-of-bias-that-explain-all-the-fake-news-pseudoscience-and-other-junk-in-your-news-feed/

Read: Americans Favor Protecting Information Freedoms Over Government Steps to Restrict Fake News http://www.journalism.org/2018/04/19/americans-favor-protecting-information-freedoms-over-government-steps-to-restrict-false-news-online/

Read: Fact Checkers Guide for Detecting Fake News https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2016/11/22/the-fact-checkers-guide-for-detecting-fake-news/?utm_term=.5319da2e6985

Now use the information from the fact-checkers guide and other articles to take the following quiz and take a screenshot of your score at the end: http://factitious.augamestudio.com/#/ Note: Make sure to click on the "Show Source" button at the bottom of each sample to see where the information came from. You are free to visit the website to see if you think it is a real or fake news site. Fake news can include satire and partially or fully fabricated information.

Now write a reflection of at least 300 words about: * what you learned about fake news and how this might help you find actual news in the future * how this fake news is a threat to real journalism * and what can/should be done to stop the spread of fake news Also, you must attach the screenshot of your game score in your post. It's OK to take the quiz more than once before posting your score.