Remember back in the day (2005) when the worst thing you might see on your timeline was this…

Well, after 15 years of Facebook, we’ve traded our ASCII poops for another type of shit. It’s called, fake news. It’s not a new trend, but it’s definitely one that’s evolved. Fake news used to be end-cap magazines proclaiming, “ELVIS LIVES! Enjoying retirement in Sarasota,” and it was only purchased by your crazy uncle, Karl. Now, it’s morphed into “news” websites, that are so convincingly real looking, they can fool the average adult. Paired with a President who has declared war on the press, and you have a recipe that strips away at democracy with every share.

Fake news manifests itself if a lot of different ways, here’s a few different examples you may have seen…

1.) Political- Although it may not have the power to sway a voter’s opinion, it certainly misleads and arms people with wrong information for debate.

2. Public Health- In my opinion the most detrimental to the general public is misleading information concerning public health, specifically when it concerns vaccines or the spread of diseases.

3.) Celebrity Gossip/Death Hoaxes- Imagine having to call your mom and say it’s a joke, I’m fine.

So how, as users, do we combat the spread of gossip and potentially dangerous misinformation? After 15 years of Facebook can we finally become responsible consumers of information? Here are a few ways to curb the spread of fake news.

1.) Verify what your sharing is fact. There are a myriad of websites dedicated to the verification of news. #sharingresponsiblyiscaring. If you’re feeling super lazy, sometimes a quick scroll through the comments section will serve to verify as well.

2.) Report it! “If you see something, say something.” It’s not hard to identify fake news if you know what you’re looking for, and it’s even easier to make social media platforms aware of it.

3.) Don’t share something just because it fits your agenda.

4.) Talk to your children, just like you would about anything potentially harmful to them, Make sure they know that fake news and misinformation exists. (Otherwise you’re going to have a ten year old that walks around thinking dinosaurs are real because they saw it on YouTube.) Also, talk to your parents.

Stay safe & be good.

– Katie

PS I’ll leave you with my favorite two pic of real news from today ♥️