… Though most pollsters adhere to sound methodological practices, the dependence of political journalism – and campaigns, independent political organizations, and so on – on polls opens a door for the unsavory. Fake polls have started to proliferate online. Their goal is to influence online political betting markets, so that […] Read more »
Coronavirus, ‘Plandemic’ and the seven traits of conspiratorial thinking
No matter the details of the plot, conspiracy theories follow common patterns of thought. Ranta Images/iStock/Getty Images Plus John Cook, George Mason University; Sander van der Linden, University of Cambridge; Stephan Lewandowsky, University of Bristol, and Ullrich Ecker, University of Western Australia The conspiracy theory video “Plandemic” recently went viral. […] Read more »
Most Americans Favor Voting by Mail as Option in November
While most Americans (64%) favor their state allowing all voters to vote by mail or absentee ballot, differences arise among key demographic subgroups. Eighty-three percent of Democrats say they favor such a measure, but fewer than half as many Republicans, 40%, express the same sentiment. CONT. Mohamed Younis, Gallup The OPINION […] Read more »
It’s not easy for ordinary citizens to identify fake news
… How good are people at sifting out fake news? In a collaboration between the NYU Center for Social Media and Politics and the Stanford Cyber Policy Center (supported by the Hewlett Foundation), we’ve been investigating whether ordinary individuals in the United States who encounter news when it first appears […] Read more »
Review: ‘After Truth,’ the Deluge
It is a fitting irony that the term “fake news” has become itself fraudulent, appropriated, by Donald Trump and his imitators, to dismiss legitimate reporting that they deem damaging, disrespectful or insufficiently flattering. But before there was this fake news, there was real fake news, an ecosystem of rumors, conspiracy […] Read more »
Misinformation Concern is Bipartisan, but Democrats Blame Foreign Powers and Republicans Blame the Media
There is a stark partisan divide over who’s to blame for misinformation circulating during the presidential election season, according to new research from the George Washington University. A nationwide survey found Republicans and Democrats are highly concerned about the spread of misinformation and the potential impacts it might have on […] Read more »