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Fake news sources and how to spot them: Home

In today's world, sharing news is as easy as clicking a button, but how often do we really think about the stories that we read? Is that story that showed up on your Facebook feed accurate? It's made a pretty big claim, but how can you tell if it's the truth?

The purpose of this research guide is to teach you how to analyze and fact check stories to verify the validity of the news.

Why Fake News?

Fake news can generate a significant amount of money for its creators with ad revenue. Learn more about the people who create the content in these articles.

NPR Reporter Tracked Down Fake News Creator

The City Getting Rich from Fake News

Types of Fake News

There are three broad categories of fake news, according to media professor Melissa Zimdars of Merrimack College.

CATEGORY 1: Fake, false, or regularly misleading websites that are shared on Facebook and social media. Some of these websites may rely on “outrage” by using distorted headlines and decontextualized or dubious information in order to generate likes, shares, and profits.

CATEGORY 2: Websites that may circulate misleading and/or potentially unreliable information

CATEGORY 3: Websites which sometimes use clickbait-y headlines and social media descriptions

No single topic falls under a single category - for example, false or misleading medical news may be entirely fabricated (Category 1), may intentionally misinterpret facts or misrepresent data (Category 2), may be accurate or partially accurate but use an alarmist title to get your attention (Category 3).  Some articles fall under more than one category.  Assessing the quality of the content is crucial to understanding whether what you are viewing is true or not.   It is up to you to do the legwork to make sure your information is good.

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