INT101 C108 Science in the Media

Every person and organization, regardless of their intentions toward neutrality and balance, can exhibit bias. To best guard against news bias, consult a variety of sources offering a variety of perspectives. 

For a more detailed look at media literacy, see FAIR's Media Literacy Guide: How to Detect Bias in News Media.

Questions to ask yourself and investigate when evaluating news include:

• Does the headline match the content? Read the whole article, as headlines are sometimes fabricated to grab your attention.
• Are there references, links, or citations? These can help validate the information, but only if you use these to fact check the information! The mere existence of these does not inherently convey reliability.
• What are other people saying about this event? Investigate a variety of source's reporting on an event. Don't rely on any one source's interpretation without seeing what others are saying.
• What can you find out about the source/author? Google the name of the source/author to learn about what others have to say about the source. This often tells you more than reading the About Us section of a website.
• Does the article only show one side of an argument or story? Be cautious of news articles that only provide one side of the story and try to find out the other side.

FILTER BUBBLES

"Filter bubble" refers to when a website's algorithm selectively assumes the information that users want to see based on past actions. This often results in users only seeing a post from people and sites that they agree with, often without them even knowing that there is a contrary argument. They are most common on social media, but also show up in your Google results and anywhere else an algorithm determines what you see (and what you see first). Filter bubbles can isolate you from information and perspectives you haven't already expressed an interest in, meaning you may miss out on important information.

CONFIRMATION BIAS

"Confirmation bias" is the tendency to search for, interpret, favor, and recall information in a way that confirms or supports one's prior beliefs or values. Some examples include not seeking out objective facts, interpreting information to support your existing beliefs, only remembering details that uphold your beliefs, and ignoring information that challenges your beliefs. Confirmation Bias works with filter bubbles to keep us locked in a cycle of only reading and interacting with ideas that we agree with. 

MISINFORMATION is false or inacurate information - getting the facts wrong.

DISINFORMATION is false or inaccurate information which is deliberately intended to mislead - intentionally misstating or misinterpreting the facts. Disinformation is sometimes called propaganda or fake news.

Source: Misinformation and disinformation. (n.d.). https://www.apa.org. Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/topics/journalism-facts/misinformation-disinformation