Fake News and the Manipulation of Public Opinion - Hardcover

Mooney, Carla

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1682825396 ISBN 13: 9781682825396

Publisher: Referencepoint Press, 2019

Synopsis

Fake news is not new but, thanks to the Internet and social media, it is spreading faster and farther than ever before. Fabricated stories are creating doubt and confusion and easing the way for the manipulation of public opinion. In some cases, websites and news articles are designed to confuse people into thinking that they are looking at trusted sources and factual stories. In other cases, the label fake news serves as a tool for discrediting unflattering accounts or opposing points of view. The result in all cases is public confusion that, many argue, threatens the foundations of democracy. Fake News and the Manipulation of Public Opinion presents a balanced but realistic view of what has been taking place, how, and why. It examines both the consequences of these actions and the efforts being made at all levels of society to end this problem.

About this title

From School Library Journal

Gr 7 Up-This concise overview of a high-demand topic explores the impact of technological developments—and social media in particular—on the spread of misinformation. In her discussion of what constitutes fake news, Mooney is careful to distinguish it from satire, biased reporting, and genuine factual errors, defining it as "fabricated news or information that is meant to be perceived as factual." Subsequent chapters examine how fake news content is created, as well as how and why it spreads so virulently via social media. Related topics such as personal data mining, news feed algorithms, targeted advertising, filter bubbles, account hacking, and public mistrust of the media are touched upon as well. Despite a handful of references to international instances of the spread of fake news, examples rely heavily on the 2016 U.S. presidential election, and on Russian interference especially. The book focuses almost entirely on social media, to the near exclusion of print/broadcast journalism. An opaque concluding chapter surveys possible solutions to identify and combat the spread of fake news, including the evolving practices of leading tech companies such as Facebook and Google, developments in artificial intelligence, increased government monitoring, and the need for individuals to develop and exercise media literacy skills. Back matter includes NewseumED's acronym for evaluating information, contact information for several fact-checking and media literacy organizations, and a suggested bibliography for further reading. VERDICT Highly readable, but cursory and limited in scope. An additional purchase.-Lauren Strohecker, McKinley Elementary School, Elkins Park, PA

Edition details

• Publisher: Referencepoint Press
• Publication date: 2019
• ISBN 10: 1682825396
• ISBN 13: 9781682825396
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 80