Facts Machine

Published in

reimaginingjournalism

5 min readDec 6, 2020

The Problem

Among our group, one major challenge that we believe journalism faces today, is a lack of trust in the media as a direct result of the rapidly increasing spread of fake news throughout social media. This disconnect between sources and audiences has become more evident as social media continues to grow as a primary source of news. As shown in a 2016 Gallup poll, only 32% of Americans hold a “great deal” or “fair amount” of trust in the media “to report the news fully, accurately and fairly”

‘The trust people have in media affects what kind of news they will seek out,” said Jenkins, a former editor at Storyful, which bills itself as a “social media intelligence” entity, analyzing digital content.’(Why Do So Many Americans Distrust the Media). Online technology nowadays advances to a point where it can track various data that people are interested in, this leads to the age of heavily personalized information; and based on the fact that some people would browse through unsourced, unreliable contents on social media, it is extremely difficult to guide people towards more truthful and verified sources when what they had always been looking for were those that only align with their perspectives.

The Big Idea

Mission Statement — Facts Machineⓒ is a fact-checking system that helps social media platforms verify information being spread on them. When a social media platform, such as Facebook or Twitter, partners with Facts Machineⓒ, they can assure users that the information they are digesting is properly sorted into factual or non-factual categories, ensuring credible news spread. This idea of a credible news feed is rare in the modern digital age but increasingly needed, as more and more false information is being shared and promoted on popular platforms. This fact-checking system is not merely just a useful tool for news consumers, but is what keeps the fabric of our democracy intact. Without it, society will continue to drown in the heap of false information that is being spread every second.

We believe that companies should receive a “seal of approval” certified by a fact checker of some sort on posts that are ethically produced (A check mark visual followed by a statement that says “independent fact-checkers/official sources have confirmed this, similar to when Twitter flags tweets)

This function, aptly named “Facts Machine” will aim to help channel reliable information without alienating a potential audience. Media companies should also Indicate reliable sources in addition to revealing unreliable sources which could help shift users towards more trustworthy media outlets with mitigated amounts of alienation. A site such as Twitter or Facebook would allow third-party fact-checkers to put their own clarifications on tweets, instead of having to go through Twitter first. Posts on social media need to be fact-checked more reliably. While sites like Twitter have improved at clarifying false statements, they have not improved at helping reliable news sources reach people to prevent misinformation from spreading.

Visual example of how Facts Machine services would appear across social media

We believe that a sort of “seal of approval” by independent fact-checkers/official sources on posts or articles that present reliable information would help channel readers on sites like Twitter and Facebook to more trustworthy media outlets.

Flowchart depicting the process of how Fact Checkers services would work, from start to finish

Audience & Impact — Our platform design serves for everyday usage purposes. Our fact-checking system allows people who strive to have more first-hand information but do not have enough time to either read or watch the news. When people are in a rush but still want to be updated, most of them go to social media to see some of the latest news updates. Although social media makes everything more efficient, it still has its disadvantages, one of them being accuracy. With all the information people receive from social media also comes those that are false. Our design strives to help social media better serve people with the news that are accurate and precise. Our platform would also help most teenagers nowadays who spend a good amount of time of their days on social media to learn things without the hindrance of fake news.

Statement of Change

Perhaps what Americans crave most in the year 2020 is honest, civil discourse concerning the abundance of issues plaguing this country. In order to achieve truth, you must start with accountability. We have to make an active effort to hold others accountable to the information they are projecting and recognize the importance of giving Americans honest information they can rely on. Facts Machineⓒ is about holding ourselves to a standard; that we have the agency and capability to decipher fact from fiction. That is a skill most Americans don’t possess, and to no fault of their own; society has never provided guidance on verifying the information we consume. So, we must do the gritty work of sifting through the lies for the sake of our democracy and its integrity. The political polarization that has resulted from this is deafening; Facts Machineⓒ is here to give Americans some much needed tranquility.

Resources

Outtakes

Investments in News Literacy — Schools need to have course contents specifically focusing on how to repair the relationship between media and the public. This way we can raise awareness starting from younger generations, and to fix the unsettling relationship between media and the public from the ground up. We should also bring public awareness into fact-checking, bigger companies like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram should invest in effective fact-checking devices in order to hold their news accountable.

Ethics — We think that the media should have a clear and harsher corrections policy regarding their provided sources. These policies should also be enforced to a greater extent than they are now. People and companies should be held accountable for conducting and circulating fake news. Outcomes should be that social media users who circulated such fake news should be suspended; and that companies with fake news should be taken to court. The media should also remain transparent about their donors and leaders. Companies should also have full disclosure of their fact-checking process; if they choose to express their advocacy voice, they should state their reasons.

Authors

Quinn O’Connor, Nathan Lannan, Mary Grace Purser & Shawn Zhang