Fake News Education at UMFK: Resources

Why should you care about whether or not your news is real or fake?

1. You deserve the truth.  You are smart enough to make up your own mind - as long as you have the real facts in front of you.  You have every right to be insulted when you read fake news, because you are in essence being treated like an idiot.
2. Fake news destroys your credibility.  If your arguments are built on bad information, it will be much more difficult for people to believe you in the future.
3. Fake news can hurt you, and a lot of other people.  Purveyors of fake and misleading medical advice like Mercola.com and NaturalNews.com help perpetuate myths like HIV and AIDS aren't related, or that vaccines cause autism.  These sites are heavily visited and their lies are dangerous.
4. Fake news is expensive.  Every year, Americans lose $39 billion in investment funds as a result of fake news, according to University of Baltimore professor Roberto Cavazos.

Compare these two links.  Which one do you think is better?  Why or why not?
1 - Eat This Not That: Shocking Facts About Farmed Salmon
2 - Cleveland Clinic HealthEssentials: Fish Faceoff

This is a direct comparison between two articles covering the same topic, and both come to similar conclusions.  But one clearly is better than the other.  Discuss the differences between the two articles and consider which one you would share with others.

Also, while it's not a direct link, the New York times has a "Fact Check of the Day" feature that analyzes a meme, tweet or other object and confirms or debunks it using reporting, fact finding and other tools.  It's a fascinating look into the newsroom of the Times.

One of the ways in which a news source demonstrates its authenticity and responsibility to its readers is through a publicly accessible code of ethics or standards.  A sample of various codes, mission statements and ethics handbooks are listed below.