I found a free online course that helps people feel more confident about the information they share on social media. It was created a few years ago for seniors in America, but its lessons are still useful and for everybody.
The course explains the difference between misinformation (unintentional falsehoods) and disinformation (deliberate falsehoods). It also encourages us to ask questions before we share a post.
- Who produced this information?
- Why have they produced it?
- Where did it come from?
- Can it be confirmed by other sources?
You can register for free at the Poynter website.
I tried the course out at the weekend. It took less than an hour. I thought it made its key points very clearly and succinctly.
I came away asking myself one big question. Why do we so often treat sharing information on social media less seriously than publishing in more traditional places?
I suppose it’s because social media is part coffee house and part publishing platform. When we’re chatting to friends in Costa Coffee, we don’t fact-check everything we say. So that’s how we behave on social media. This relaxed atmosphere then allows information to circulate that wouldn’t be accepted by a reputable magazine or journal.
Look for the sources
Reliable online information often contains links to the original source material. For example, a report about a scientific discovery will link to an article about it in an academic journal. An article about housing statistics will share where the numbers came from.
When the original material is highly problematic, an article may not direct readers to its location. The best thing in this situation is to look at who published the article and where. If the publication is usually reliable, vetted by experts, and the writer has a strong track record, it’s probably safe to trust it.
If this topic interests you, you might like this blog post about using Google Lens to track down image sources.
TIDE and CANUTE 