Brexit fakes, election hoaxes and a new beat for BuzzFeed
Hi everyone,
Let’s get straight down to business. Here’s what we’ve been working on this week:
- Hoaxers are having a field day with Brexit, so we made a special edition of the fake news quiz. The average score is 76 per cent — see if you can do better
- The upcoming US election is bound to bring out even more fake news stories, so Craig Silverman looked at the kind of hoaxes to be wary of
- I spoke to Craig about his new role at BuzzFeed: using the organisation’s social media acumen to lead a “global effort” in the fight against fake news
What else was there?
Poynter’s Meredith Clark surveyed journalists in the UK and US for a new set of news values for the digital age; The Washington Post’s Caitlin Dewey profiled serial hoaxer Tommaso Debenedetti; the American Press Institute’s “this week in fact-checking” column is always worth a read; and CNN held a discussion on fact-checking, in which one contributor called the practice an “out of touch, elitist, media-type thing” and that “people out here in America don’t care” 😐 Thankfully, Politifact editor Angie Drobnic Holan was on hand to set the record straight.
Particular attention was also paid to Facebook’s announcement that, two and a half years after giving news more prominence in its Newsfeed, the world’s biggest social network is now making friends and family the priority again.
Nieman Lab, The New York Times and many more all had hot takes to offer on the issue, but the main concern here is that this this will only reinforce the filter bubble and prevalence of fake news further. Whether news organisations can react by making their news stories — and debunks — more socially shareable to reach a wider audience remains to be seen.
Until next week, all the best and stay true,
Alastair
Alastair Reid
Managing editor
First Draft
@ajreid
