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CIVIX Explains: Information Pollution

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    ♪ (music) ♪
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    [Information Polution]
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    The internet gives everyone in society
    a voice in the public sphere.
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    But when anyone can post anything online,
    the result is a lot of information.
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    Some of this is trustworthy,
    but a lot of it isn’t.
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    On social media and search platforms,
    all information is made to look the same.
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    It can be hard to tell what is
    from a credible source,
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    such as a professional news organization,
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    and what is less reliable.
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    Social media networks make it easy
    for wrong information to spread,
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    which means we hear a lot
    about the fake news problem.
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    But what is fake news, exactly?
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    The phrase gets used to describe
    all kinds of wrong information,
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    from articles intended to deceive people,
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    to misleading memes
    and clickbait headlines,
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    to conspiracy theories.
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    Some people call news reports
    they don’t like "fake news",
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    as a way to discredit reliable sources,
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    which only adds to the confusion.
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    To understand the problem
    of wrong information online,
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    it helps to define and categorize it.
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    False information
    can be sorted into two categories:
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    misinformation and disinformation.
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    Misinformation is wrong,
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    but the person sharing it
    believes it to be true.
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    While misinformation can be damaging,
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    its intent is not to cause harm.
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    Examples could include a factual error
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    caused by misunderstanding,
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    a manipulated image,
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    or a real photo that appears
    with a made up story.
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    Disinformation, on the other hand,
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    is deliberately false information
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    created and shared to cause harm.
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    It has the goal of confusing
    people about what is true,
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    and influencing how they think and act.
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    For example, a false rumour
    circulated about a political candidate
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    that causes others
    to doubt their trustworthiness.
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    Together, all this mis- and disinformation
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    can be thought of
    as information pollution.
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    Unreliable stories or posts
    can be interesting or funny,
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    or spark an emotion that makes us want
    to believe and share them with friends.
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    People contribute to information pollution
    by sharing false and misleading content.
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    Before believing or sharing
    something, stop and ask,
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    “Who made this, and why?”
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    This is the first step
    in combating information pollution
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    to become a more informed citizen.
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    ♪ (music) ♪
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    [Brought to you by CIVIX]
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    [With the support of Canada]
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    [Produced by SPACE HEART]
Title:
CIVIX Explains: Information Pollution
Description:

When anyone can post anything online, the result is a lot of information. To understand the problem of false and misleading information, it helps to define and categorize it.
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Video Language:
English
Team:
Amplifying Voices
Project:
CIVIX
Duration:
03:01

English subtitles

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