Misinformation

Misinformation means sharing false or misleading information, even if the person sharing it does not mean to cause harm. This is different from disinformation, which is spread on purpose to trick or mislead people. Misinformation can cause serious problems by confusing the public, damaging trust in science and governments, and making it harder for people to work together or make good decisions, especially now that we live in a world where things can be posted and shared online instantly, without anyone checking if it is true.[5][6]

Sometimes, misinformation spreads because people believe it is true or because they want to share something that matches their personal opinions. For example, confirmation bias is when people only want to hear things that support what they already believe, even if those things are not true. Another problem is the illusory truth effect, which means the more often someone hears a lie, the more likely they are to believe it. These mental shortcuts make it easier for misinformation to take hold and spread.[7][8]

Social media platforms like Facebook, TikTok, and X (formerly Twitter) make it easier for misinformation to go viral. These platforms are designed to show people content that gets the most likes, shares, or comments, not necessarily what’s true. That is why posts about conspiracy theories, fake news, or emotional topics like anti-vaccine messages or false stories about climate change can spread faster than real scientific facts.[9][10]

Throughout history, misinformation has had real and harmful effects. For example, during the AIDS crisis in South Africa, President Thabo Mbeki ignored real science and supported fake treatments, which experts say caused over 300,000 preventable deaths.[11] In 2003, misinformation about weapons in Iraq helped start a war based on unproven claims.[12] Even companies have used misinformation, like the tobacco industry, which for years denied that smoking caused cancer, and oil companies, which funded messages that denied climate change to delay action.[13]

Today, technology has made misinformation even more dangerous. Tools like deepfakes (fake videos) and AI-generated content can make lies look like they came from real people or trusted sources. This makes it hard for regular people to tell what’s real and what’s not, especially when the false information contains a little bit of truth mixed in.[14][15]

Public health is especially at risk. For example, a fake study from 1998 falsely claimed a link between the MMR vaccine and autism. Even though the study was later proven wrong and removed, it still affects how people think about vaccines today.[16] Misinformation also hurts people in poor or vulnerable communities who may not have access to good education or strong internet skills. During the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, some people believed the false rumor that health workers were spreading the disease, which caused panic and attacks on medical teams trying to help.[17]

Fighting misinformation takes teamwork. Websites like Snopes and PolitiFact work to check facts.[18][19] Schools can teach students how to spot fake news, and trusted leaders should talk honestly and clearly with the public.[20]

References

  1. ↑ Henley, Jon (10 June 2016). "Why Vote Leave's £350m weekly EU cost claim is wrong". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
  2. ↑ "The UK's EU membership fee". Full Fact. 25 February 2016. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
  3. ↑ "Reality Check: Would Brexit mean extra £350m a week for NHS?". BBC News. 15 April 2016.
  4. ↑ Ackrill, Robert (27 April 2016). "Fact Check: how much does the UK actually pay to the EU?". The Conversation.
  5. ↑ "Misinformation and disinformation". www.apa.org. Retrieved 2025-07-28.
  6. ↑ Lewandowsky, Stephan; Ecker, Ullrich K. H.; Cook, John (2017). "Beyond misinformation: Understanding and coping with the "post-truth" era". Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition. 6 (4): 353–369. doi:10.1016/j.jarmac.2017.07.008. ISSN 2211-369X.
  7. ↑ Fazio, Lisa K.; Brashier, Nadia M.; Payne, B. Keith; Marsh, Elizabeth J. (2015). "Knowledge does not protect against illusory truth". Journal of Experimental Psychology: General. 144 (5): 993–1002. doi:10.1037/xge0000098. ISSN 1939-2222.
  8. ↑ Nickerson, Raymond S. (1998-06-01). "Confirmation Bias: A Ubiquitous Phenomenon in Many Guises". Review of General Psychology. 2 (2): 175–220. doi:10.1037/1089-2680.2.2.175. ISSN 1089-2680.
  9. ↑ Pennycook, Gordon; Rand, David G. (2021-05-01). "The Psychology of Fake News". Trends in Cognitive Sciences. 25 (5): 388–402. doi:10.1016/j.tics.2021.02.007. ISSN 1364-6613. PMID 33736957.
  10. ↑ Vosoughi, Soroush; Roy, Deb; Aral, Sinan (2018-03-09). "The spread of true and false news online". Science. 359 (6380): 1146–1151. doi:10.1126/science.aap9559.
  11. ↑ Chigwedere, Pride; Seage, George R. III; Gruskin, Sofia; Lee, Tun-Hou; Essex, M. (2008-12-01). "Estimating the Lost Benefits of Antiretroviral Drug Use in South Africa". JAIDS Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes. 49 (4): 410. doi:10.1097/QAI.0b013e31818a6cd5. ISSN 1525-4135.
  12. ↑ Rampton, Sheldon; Stauber, John C. (2003). Weapons of mass deception: the uses of propaganda in Bush's war on Iraq. New York: Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin. ISBN 978-1-58542-276-0.
  13. ↑ Oreskes, Naomi; Conway, Erik M. (2022). Merchants of doubt: how a handful of scientists obscured the truth on issues from tobacco smoke to climate change (Paperback edition, Nachdruck ed.). New York London Oxford New Delhi Sydney: Bloomsbury. ISBN 978-1-60819-394-3.
  14. ↑ Vaccari, Cristian; Chadwick, Andrew (2020-01-01). "Deepfakes and Disinformation: Exploring the Impact of Synthetic Political Video on Deception, Uncertainty, and Trust in News". Social Media + Society. 6 (1): 2056305120903408. doi:10.1177/2056305120903408. ISSN 2056-3051.
  15. ↑ Adrien Friggeri, Lada Adamic. "Rumor Cascades". AAAI. Retrieved 2025-07-28.
  16. ↑ Godlee, Fiona; Smith, Jane; Marcovitch, Harvey (2011-01-06). "Wakefield's article linking MMR vaccine and autism was fraudulent". BMJ. 342: c7452. doi:10.1136/bmj.c7452. ISSN 0959-8138. PMID 21209060.
  17. ↑ Vinck, Patrick; Pham, Phuong N.; Bindu, Kenedy K.; Bedford, Juliet; Nilles, Eric J. (2019-05-01). "Institutional trust and misinformation in the response to the 2018–19 Ebola outbreak in North Kivu, DR Congo: a population-based survey". The Lancet Infectious Diseases. 19 (5): 529–536. doi:10.1016/S1473-3099(19)30063-5. ISSN 1473-3099. PMID 30928435.
  18. ↑ "Snopes.com". www.snopes.com. Retrieved 2025-07-28.
  19. ↑ "PolitiFact". www.politifact.com. Retrieved 2025-07-28.
  20. ↑ Lazer, David M. J.; Baum, Matthew A.; Benkler, Yochai; Berinsky, Adam J.; Greenhill, Kelly M.; Menczer, Filippo; Metzger, Miriam J.; Nyhan, Brendan; Pennycook, Gordon; Rothschild, David; Schudson, Michael (2018-03-09). "The science of fake news". Science. 359 (6380): 1094–1096. doi:10.1126/science.aao2998.
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