From The Onion, “America’s Finest News Source”
Prince Frederick, MD – Information expert Ryan O’Grady pinpointed the reason why news stories that are not factual can be hard to debunk. “It’s hard to change that first impression,” he said. O’Grady, who is the deputy manager of the Maryland State Library Resource Office at the Enoch Pratt Library, spoke to a small but enthusiastic gathering of locals Thursday evening, Jan. 19 at Calvert Library’s Prince Frederick Branch. The talk was entitled “Fake News Invasion.”
The trend toward fake news, O’Grady indicated, is being generated through the Internet and is being shared—rather rapidly—on social media. He defines “fake news” as “information that cannot be verified, without sources, and possibly untrue.”
O’Grady cited data compiled by Pew Research, which shows that the trend toward relying on online sources is on the rise, especially among the younger demographic. While television remains the top source across the board, at least one attendee at the presentation made it clear “the mainstream media would be the last place I would go.”
Some of the red flags readers and viewers should look for, said O’Grady, are “authorship—who is creating this message?—format, audience, content and purpose.”
When questioning the suspect news story’s author, readers should check LinkedIn, which aids in identifying the writer specializes in a certain field and authority. When analyzing the source, the web address, O’Grady advised to check how the address ends—“dot com” means it’s a business, “dot edu” denotes affiliation with a school and “dot gov” indicates the information is from a government agency.
It is also important to check the dates on the articles friends share with you on social media. “Like eggs and milk, information can have an expiration date,” O’Grady said. Seeking to determine the bias in the article is also important, since “bias articles may not tell the whole story.”
When asked to explain the term troll, O’Grady explained that “trollers” are often paid to disseminate information on the Internet in the comments sections of stories. The professional troller is “someone trying to get a rise out of someone.”
O’Grady warned that some information web sites are not what they appear to be. An example of this is site called martinlutherking.org. O’Grady said the site is hosted by a group called “Stormfront,” which is a white supremacist group. “You are looking at information that is biased,” he said.
Of course “fake news” has its lighter side, provided by sites whose aim to strictly to entertain with satire. The Onion, which calls itself “America’s Finest News Source,” is one of the more widely circulated sources of this type of bogus news. O’Grady showed The Onion’s masterful work in making unsuspecting readers believe the American Red Cross was planning to provide “blood drop-off” bins throughout the country.
O’Grady acknowledged that many readers and viewers will label news fake “if you disagree with it.” Still, he urged the audience to be savvy consumers and be reliant of local libraries and librarians to aid them in verifying news stories, rumors and reports that create skepticism.
In Calvert County, the local library can provide information to guide information searches. Visit the library’s web site at http://calvert.lib.md.us/research.html
Contact Marty Madden at marty.madden@thebaynet.com