How to combat fake news?

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1e8q50y3v7o

This is from a BBC reporter (see link for full story). And it’s very interesting.
People using X (formally Twitter) get paid if their tweets (or is that Exes?) go viral, no matter the content. So people are actively posting any old nonsense, as long as it’s got a chance lf going viral.

And this surged the conspiracy claptrap around the dual storms which battered the US the last two weeks.

Now conspiracies are nothing new. But they can have serious real-life impact.

How do you think we should combat them? Force X, for example, to change their payment rules? Would that even be enough?

At our work we get told to multi-source input. But that’s impossible for every single opinion or “fact” which you want to bring across.

What do you think?
Or are the consequencies of fake news not worth worrying about even?

I messaged dozens of accounts which shared false and misleading posts on X related to both hurricanes. Their accounts seemed to be able to go viral precisely because of changes made at X since Elon Musk became owner. While the blue-check used to be given out only to people who had been verified and vetted, users are now allowed to purchase these ticks. The algorithm, in turn, gives their posts greater prominence. They can also then profit from sharing posts, regardless of whether they are true or not.

X’s revenue sharing policy means that blue-tick users can earn a share of revenue from the ads in their replies. On 9 October, the site announced that “payouts are increasing”, and accounts would now be paid based on engagement from other users who pay to get Premium membership, not the adverts in their responses.

This has incentivised some users to share whatever it is that will go viral – however untrue. Several of those I messaged acknowledged to me that they benefitted from getting engagement from their posts and sharing content they know will get attention.

It’s true, most social media companies allow users to make money from views. But YouTube, TikTok, Instagram and Facebook have guidelines which allow them to de-monetise or suspend profiles that post content that spreads misinformation, and say they label posts when they are misleading. X does not have guidelines on misinformation in the same way.

There is a real-world impact to this kind of disinformation, which can undermine trust in authorities - in this case - during a complex rescue and recovery operation following Hurricane Milton.

Remember when you lefties owned twitter and y'all called everyone a conspiracy theorist and then Musk bought the company and found out the people on the right were right all along?

Good times. 🙂

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/technology/musk:-all-twitter-conspiracy-theories-turning-out-to-be-true

@shavixmir
You fight fake news with real news. In other words, you allow debates to expose the truth. If you want to hide the truth you censor.

Lies are feeble. They do not need censoring. The truth does. If it was fake news they would not need to censor it. Censoring is all about protecting the lies.

@thedogandthecello said
Remember when you lefties owned twitter and y'all called everyone a conspiracy theorist and then Musk bought the company and found out the people on the right were right all along?

Good times. 🙂

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/technology/musk:-all-twitter-conspiracy-theories-turning-out-to-be-true

@Metal-Brain said
@shavixmir
You fight fake news with real news. In other words, you allow debates to expose the truth. If you want to hide the truth you censor.

Lies are feeble. They do not need censoring. The truth does. If it was fake news they would not need to censor it. Censoring is all about protecting the lies.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1e8q50y3v7o

BBC on how conspiracy theories took over the hurricane narrative.

@thedogandthecello said
Remember when you lefties owned twitter and y'all called everyone a conspiracy theorist and then Musk bought the company and found out the people on the right were right all along?

Good times. 🙂

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/technology/musk:-all-twitter-conspiracy-theories-turning-out-to-be-true

@Metal-Brain said
@shavixmir
You fight fake news with real news. In other words, you allow debates to expose the truth. If you want to hide the truth you censor.

Lies are feeble. They do not need censoring. The truth does. If it was fake news they would not need to censor it. Censoring is all about protecting the lies.

@shavixmir said
What helps you determine what is true and what is fake?

@shavixmir said
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1e8q50y3v7o

This is from a BBC reporter (see link for full story). And it’s very interesting.
People using X (formally Twitter) get paid if their tweets (or is that Exes?) go viral, no matter the content. So people are actively posting any old nonsense, as long as it’s got a chance lf going viral.

And this surged the conspiracy clap ...[text shortened]... - in this case - during a complex rescue and recovery operation following Hurricane Milton.[/quote]

@moonbus said
The same laws should apply to Internet forums as to print media. Hold the editorial staff accountable by suing the pants off them for publishing lies, slander, defamation, incitement to violence.

@Suzianne said
Back about 140 years, they'd say, "About time to stretch some rope."

Outside of government regulation I don't think it's possible to combat fake news.

I've said this before but what news is consumed is largely a matter of personality and culture. Are you the type who searches for what he wants to hear or the type who really wants to be informed and is searching for accuracy? If the latter, you will naturally be lead away from Twitter or at the very least, be able to spot sensationalist/propagandist accounts.

The problem comes if you're a child or young person honestly seeking answers and don't know a world outside of social media. Most of us on this forum witnessed the evolution from real news to the rise of Fox, to social media dominating the narrative. So we know what to look for.

A child who trusts what he/she hears or sees on the internet doesn't have that advantage. In this day and age, schools should teach courses on how to spot fake content on the internet. Most governments should mandate this as part of school curriculums.

Engage 🧠

@vivify said
Outside of government regulation I don't think it's possible to combat fake news.

I've said this before but what news is consumed is largely a matter of personality and culture. Are you the type who searches for what he wants to hear or the type who really wants to be informed and is searching for accuracy? If the latter, you will naturally be lead away from Twitter or ...[text shortened]... t fake content on the internet. Most governments should mandate this as part of school curriculums.