The term “fake news” has become a colloquialism in circles everywhere along the socio-political spectrum. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, it has become a public health crisis. Social media propagates the spread of fake news through clickbait, when users share articles based on headlines without reading the article or vetting the source. For this reason, social media platforms are being asked to do something about it – but what this “something” is must walk a thin line of moderating content without infringing on freedom of speech or violating user privacy.
Recently, Twitter has stepped up by flagging content deemed misleading accompanied by links to verified facts. We all saw this in action when this feature was used on a post by Mr. Trump. Twitter recently launched a new feature, starting on Android phones in the United States. This feature detects when a user is about to share an article that has not been opened on the platform and activates a pop-up warning. Twitter support explained, “When you Retweet an article that you haven’t opened on Twitter, we may ask if you’d like to open it first.”
If you have not opened it on Twitter but still want to share it, the platform will not stop you. You may have read the article in another browser window or on another device. This new feature is meant to make users stop a moment, interrupting a knee-jerk reaction that can spread false information.
Some users think this is a good first step to cultivating correct content, and for training Twitter users to do some level of due diligence before propagating information. Others feel that Twitter is acting as an overprotective parent, condescending to adult users.
While social media platforms sort out their ethical dilemmas and best practices, every one of us can take steps to stop the spread of disinformation. It should not take a cautionary pop-up to get people to do their due diligence before sharing information. Read the article. Look up the author and publication. Read at least one more article on the same topic. Check any sources provided for the article in questions and look up their author and publication. If the publication makes a redaction or walks back what was claimed in the content you shared, edit your post to acknowledge this. While this may seem like a lengthy list, it needn’t take more than just a couple of minutes, and the impact can be exponential.