{"id":283,"date":"2022-05-30T15:43:31","date_gmt":"2022-05-30T22:43:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/?p=283"},"modified":"2022-05-30T17:47:01","modified_gmt":"2022-05-31T00:47:01","slug":"how-have-digital-learning-experiences-impacted-the-dissemination-of-misinformation-or-fake-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/how-have-digital-learning-experiences-impacted-the-dissemination-of-misinformation-or-fake-news\/","title":{"rendered":"How Digital Learning Experiences Have Impacted the Dissemination of Misinformation or \u201cFake\u201d News"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap\">     Digital experiences have impacted the way in which we receive and send information (Veletsianos, 2015).&nbsp; Misinformation (MI) and fake news (FN) that gets disseminated and shared has accelerated in frequency and scope. According to Rheingold (2012, as cited in Parthenis, 2020) the average American consumes 34 GB of information per day (that is roughly 100,500 words per day!) How can we filter all of this information into the good, the bad or the ugly?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>     Fake news is defined as any information that is intentionally or unintentionally misleading which could be arranged on a spectrum of misinformation such as parody, satire, propaganda, click bait or fabricated content (Wikipedia, 2022). There are risks associated with receiving this information, and how it is used.&nbsp; For example, BBC News Reality Check (2020, as cited in Parthenis, 2020) found some examples of misinformation in Africa related to the pandemic: Shaving a beard can protect against coronavirus &#8211; an old graphic from the US health department was used to suggest that this myth was fact &#8211; it was even attributed to the Centre for Disease Control (CDC).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>     We see three key areas where the spread of MI and FN through digital experiences has had an impact on students and educators: access, skills and content.&nbsp; The aim of this task for each person in our triad is to discuss one key area of impact of how digital learning platforms have impacted the spread of MI and FN.&nbsp;Please refer to Nicole&#8217;s blog <a href=\"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0264\/\">here<\/a> and Gillian&#8217;s blog <a href=\"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0250\/\">here<\/a> for information regarding access and content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>SKILLS Impact:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-text-color\" style=\"color:#ec1f64\"><strong>77% of Americans Think Other People Live in Their Own Internet Bubble\u2026&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-text-color\" style=\"color:#ec1f64\"><strong>but Only 32% Think They Themselves Do<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><sub>Ipsos &#8211; <em>Fake News, Filter Bubbles, and Post-Truth Art Other People\u2019s Problems<\/em> (Public Sector) &#8211; Sept. 6, 2018 (Media \/ Public opinion \/ International) &#8211; Washington, DC<\/sub><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>CONS:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>OVERCONFIDENCE: A well-documented effect called the Kruger-Dunning effect, states that people who are the most confident in their own knowledge are often the least likely to be well-informed on the matter (Fernbach et al., 2019 as cited in Alwan, Garcia, Kirakosian, Weiss, 2022).<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>DIGITAL NATIVE MYTHOLOGY: \u201cThough traditionally labeled as digital natives and technologically savvy (Tapscott, 1999, as cited in Alwan, Garcia, Kirakosian, Weiss, 2022), university students are not impervious to information technology problems, and their levels of facility and comfort with technology are \u201cnot uniform\u201d (Bennett et al., 2008, p. 783 as cited in Alwan, Garcia, Kirakosian, Weiss, 2022).&nbsp;<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>AGE: Those aged 65 and older shared more than six times the amount of fake news than younger groups (Hartley &amp; Vu, 2020).<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>COGNITIVE BIAS: Lazer et al. (2018, as cited in Hartley &amp; Vu, 2020, pg. 5) outline cognitive biases that determine the allure&nbsp; of&nbsp; fake&nbsp; news,&nbsp; including&nbsp; self-selection&nbsp; (limiting&nbsp; one\u2019s&nbsp; consumption&nbsp; only&nbsp; to&nbsp; affirming content), confirmation (giving greater credibility to affirming content), and desirability (accepting&nbsp; only&nbsp; affirming&nbsp; content).\u201d&nbsp;<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>LACK OF AWARENESS: Many people are unaware that social media platforms are not meant for the dissemination of information, but are, rather, as social media platforms are meant for connecting, socializing, fraternizing and\/or being a part of a group or community that interests them. Even if the group is a pseudo-academic one, for example, AJ+ or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/groups\/1519103878311682\/?hoisted_section_header_type=recently_seen&amp;multi_permalinks=3157777651110955&amp;__cft__[0]=AZUOyN_fjzQ9GytHK6fcmVhRMBsQ591zWr9eJDwh3i9asTu62GySCVIHduxglo4kJYYBSYoSnohA3UW7gxclym4GpMnVVRPha3YZvYNOHxwExg-p80Ux5pvtcDInz27auAlXA7KTo4JwZUbVzvT-HSeHyEkNQSA3vVVAPBhFixSTSgRZnrgLfCnrK8ZfIQqV-cFAjMIwVFZcUBYarqwxI-uC&amp;__tn__=-UC%2CP-R\">Archaeology and Ancient Worlds<\/a> on Facebook, or a pseudo-celebrity such as Elon Musk on Twitter, we cannot rely solely on them for information (Sparrow, 2019).<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>PROS:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>SELECTIVE\/DISCERNING: Teachers need to be more discerning when sharing information from YouTube, Twitter or Facebook (Parthenis, 2020). When educators are more selective, we can teach the students to be as well.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>MITIGATION &amp; RESPONSIBILITY: Some tech giants, like Facebook, Twitter and Google are attempting to mitigate fake news on their platforms by offering tip sheets or using bots that have algorithms in place to detect hate speech or other misleading or defamatory content (Parthenis, 2020).<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>(However, I wonder if this will change once Elon Musk owns Twitter &#8211; Musk stated he would reinstate Donald Trump\u2019s account and that he should not have been banned in the first place &#8211; YIKES!)&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>EDUCATION FIRST: Within educational circles, there are resources to \u201cfight\u201d misinformation such as <a href=\"http:\/\/mediasmarts.ca\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"mediasmarts.ca\">mediasmarts.ca<\/a> in Canada and the Digital literacy Resource Centre (DRC) in the USA, however, it would be up to teachers to help facilitate students using these resources which will hopefully lead to more resources like this being created and shared (Parthenis, 2020).<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>     Ultimately, social media companies, journalists and educators are responsible for presenting information, news and other resources in as an unbiased manner as possible and then reinforcing lessons regarding those biases, especially online (Guess, Lerner,&nbsp; Lyons, Montgomery, Nyhan, Reifler, &amp; Sircar, 2020).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p> <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"762\" height=\"1024\" data-src=\"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/242\/2022\/05\/image-762x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-287 lazyload\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/242\/2022\/05\/image-762x1024.png 762w, https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/242\/2022\/05\/image-223x300.png 223w, https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/242\/2022\/05\/image-768x1032.png 768w, https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/242\/2022\/05\/image-600x806.png 600w, https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/242\/2022\/05\/image-945x1270.png 945w, https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/242\/2022\/05\/image.png 1082w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 762px) 100vw, 762px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 762px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 762\/1024;\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>ODDS n ENDS:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Tools used to persuade; can be used for propaganda, misinformation, or \u201cfake\u201d news:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Types of bias used in the media:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Bias through selection and omission<\/li><li>Bias by headline<\/li><li>Bias by photos, captions, camera angles<\/li><li>Bias through use of names and titles<\/li><li>Bias through statistics and crowd counts<\/li><li>Bias through word choice and tone (University of Washington Libraries, 2020)<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Types of rhetoric\/rhetorical appeal:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Three main types: pathos, logos and ethos:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Logos appeals to the audience&#8217;s reason, using logic or justifications.&nbsp;<\/li><li>Ethos appeals to the speaker&#8217;s status or authority, making the audience more likely to trust them.&nbsp; EG: Using celebrity endorsements or political approval.<\/li><li>Pathos appeals to the emotions, trying to make the audience feel angry or sympathetic. EG: Sad, half-starved puppy; appeal from PETA or SPCA.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>\u2026which use devices such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Hyperbole<\/li><li>Onomatopoeia<\/li><li>Maxims&nbsp;<\/li><li>Metaphors\/Similes<\/li><li>Alliteration<\/li><li>Repetition<\/li><li>Allusion<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Digital experiences have impacted the way in which we receive and send information (Veletsianos, 2015).&nbsp; Misinformation (MI) and fake news (FN) that gets disseminated and shared has accelerated in frequency and scope. According to Rheingold (2012, as cited in Parthenis, 2020) the average American consumes 34 GB of information per day (that is roughly 100,500 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":270,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[55,23,20,56,21,57],"class_list":["post-283","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-lrnt521","tag-fake-news","tag-lrnt-521","tag-malat","tag-misinformation","tag-reflection","tag-unit-4"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/283","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/270"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=283"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/283\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":290,"href":"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/283\/revisions\/290"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=283"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=283"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0260\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=283"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}