Walking the fine line in a time of fake news
SONIA VERMA | APRIL 20, 2018
Mark Busser ’05, ’14 uses conspiracy theories to teach undergrads to think critically and question what they’re told. In our current media climate, they’re not the only ones who need help discerning fact from fiction.
Mark Busser was talking about fake news before it was cool.
The political science instructor’s Inquiry in the Social Sciences course has focused on conspiracy theories and fake or biased news since 2012, teaching students to think critically and analytically — in their academic work, but also in their lives after university.
“We look at what’s going on in the world, we examine social issues, we talk about cover-ups,” says Busser. “Inquiry and skepticism benefit democratic oversight — they keep people paying attention to what’s going on.”
But at a time when accusations of “fake news” fly nearly every day, it’s not just students who need help walking a line between gullibility, skepticism and outright distrust of those in power. So Busser is distilling some of what he teaches his students for the general public.
After delivering a sold-out talk on conspiracy theories and fake news in Hamilton in the fall, Busser took his teaching on the road, speaking to an audience in Washington about healthy skepticism, reliable reporting and walking that fine line between credulity and cynicism.
Busser says a deep examination of conspiracy theories is an invaluable tool to teach critical thinking.
“Conspiracy theories are oversimplified caricatures of something that is or was wrong,” he says. “But the more seriously you take conspiracy theories, the more you will learn about history, society, politics and humanity.”
Back when he started teaching the inquiry course, Busser says it was easy to spot comically fake news or faux analysis — he mentions the Colbert Report on television and the Onion website, both of which rely on satire for laughs.
Nowadays, though, the term “fake news” refers to something more sinister: Articles that use fabricated stories and doctored or out-of-context photos to dupe readers or viewers. “The goal here is not to play it for laughs — it’s genuinely deceptive,” Busser says.
Sometimes, a fake or misleading story might be the only article on an entire website — a huge red flag, to those who know to look for it. But that one fake story can still get shared thousands of times on social media. Whatever its creator’s motives — money, politics, the rush that comes with manipulating a conversation, fooling thousands of people or going viral — it can create division and inflame tensions.
That’s the media climate today’s students have grown up in, Busser says. He sees first-hand how a 24-hour news cycle and the rise of “a culture of rage” on social media shapes young people’s outlook. Thanks to the ease with which anyone can get a message out to the masses, every fresh cohort of students he meets is surrounded by “a rich ecosystem of ideas and ideology.”
“Students are so used to choosing and curating their own media sphere, they arrive here more partisan in their views than undergrads of the ’80s or the ’90s,” Busser says. “And they’re extremely confident in their beliefs, to the point where they’re sometimes annoyed by information that runs counter to what they think.”
It’s the down side to always being able to find a source — even a sketchy one — that supports your view: You can simply dismiss an idea or even evidence that runs counter to it, Busser says.
“It’s not truly critical thinking. It’s avoidance.”
That’s the point at which buying into a conspiracy theory or fake news can create dysfunction, and that’s where academic inquiry comes in.
Often, fake or discredited information can spawn enduring conspiracy theories that are actually damaging, Busser says.
“Climate change is real, but we’re not acting as we should to address it because of disbelief in the face of hard scientific evidence,” he says. “Anti-vaccine theories have a tragic human consequence: Once-conquered diseases are re-emerging, and old people and little children are dying, and that’s horrible.”
On the flip side, healthy skepticism can spiral into distrust or cynicism, he warns. Just as falling for fake news can spawn conspiracy theories, so can dismissing all news as fake. Busser points to people who think U.S. school shootings are fabricated and the children and teachers talking about it are actors, paid to promote an anti-gun agenda.
“Bad faith, cynicism and confidence that people are actively scheming can distract us from the more mundane ways that power works,” Busser says. “There are plenty of areas where governments, for instance, deserve more scrutiny. But by mythologizing social processes and looking for secret manipulators, we miss what’s actually going on.”
“If people don’t distinguish between good reporting and sensational clickbait, the conversation breaks down.”
“Climate change is real, but we’re not acting as we should to address it because of disbelief in the face of hard scientific evidence.”
HOW TO SPOT FAKE NEWS
With talk of fake news everywhere, and most people getting their news from the Internet, it’s getting harder and harder for them to figure out which sources they can trust, and which news is real. As news consumers, we want to be skeptical but not cynical, Mark Busser says. But we also want to be sure our news is informing us, not misdirecting us.
If that sounds like a tall order, Busser suggests a few things to consider when you want to know if you’re looking at fact or fabrication:
The URL: Fake news sites try to look like legitimate, reputable outlets, so when you’re reading something online, it’s worth taking a second to look at the web address, also called the URL. Fake sites will often tack a few extra letters, like “.co” at the end of a realistic-sounding web address. So a fake site might use www.cnn.com.co, or www.mcmaster.ca.co
A theme: What kind of content does the site contain — is it mostly stories around a particular theme or themes? How frequently do they publish?
About us: Sometimes, satire or joke websites will use the “About us” space to point out that their content is satirical, and not to be taken as fact. But sometimes, Busser warns, sites with more malicious content will present outright lies as truth, then use the “About us” page to make the excuse of satire.
A culture of rage: Fake news sites often try to drum up outrage or feelings of anger. If reading something makes you feel that way, it’s worth asking yourself if that was the point, Busser says.
Attribution: Who is writing these articles, and do they say where they’re getting their information — an interview with a named source, a document, a police report, or a public event? Legitimate news sources will cite a name or organization as the source of every fact they report. Online, they usually link to reports and documents that contain any information they cite. If the website mentions a previous news story, can you find it?
Eye-catching photos: If a picture seems too good to be true, try a reverse search on Google to see if it is actually what the site says it is. (Fake sites often use doctored or out-of-context images.)
