In the past, if someone said blatant nonsense, they were usually simply labeled as a crazy person. Today, however, many of these confused minds are networking and forming a numerically impressive community. Now not all conspiracy theories are the same and by no means everyone who adheres to it is a crazy person. But the number of false and disinformation online has long since reached a worrying level. The speed at which fake news spreads is particularly fatal. It is by no means always easy to distinguish between true and false.

Fake news through fake seriousness!

It is more difficult to recognize the truth of fake news on the Internet. Because not all theories fall into the category of blatant nonsense . On the contrary, some things certainly have a core of truth, but may be completely taken out of context. It doesn’t matter what the topics are. Fake news is very often spread in the areas of politics, nutrition or health. Studies show that misinformation spreads much faster online than facts. But what are the reasons for this? On the one hand, fake news is often presented in a professional manner. In the form of serious-looking news programs, the reports are read out by well-dressed presenters and are often spiced up with contributions from so-called experts or scientists. Prefixed doctoral degrees also create the appearance of competence.

Trapped in your own opinion bubble

On the other hand, algorithms in social media are certainly partly to blame for the rapid spread of fake news. It is human nature to have others confirm one's own opinion or worldview. Therefore, people specifically search for the right information and generally distrust sources that say otherwise. Regardless of the truth, facts that do not fit one's own view are deliberately ignored. Algorithms now ensure that you are presented with more articles and links that support this already established opinion. In this way, your own erroneous opinion becomes more and more manifest and it becomes more and more difficult to break it down.

Not every conspiracy theory is one!

Sometimes you get the impression that some people or media are very quick to use the term conspiracy theory. Their followers are then deliberately discredited as swearers and other opinions outside the mainstream are no longer permitted. However, it should not be forgotten that many things that are now accepted as fact were long considered conspiracy theories . The best example of this is the Watergate affair in the 1970s.

Checklist for evaluating online sources

MIMIKAMA

The Internet is an almost inexhaustible source of all kinds of information, but also a collection of many half-truths and untruths.

Even if it's not always easy, it's worth critically questioning online sources and investing a little time in checking information. In this article we will give you a checklist for evaluating sources on the Internet and show you how to become a fact checker in 5 steps.

Checklist for evaluating online sources


WHO?

  • Who is behind it?
    Author, owner, editor of the website? Private individual, organization (.org, .or.at), authority (.gv.at), university (.ac.at), company (.co, .at, .de,.com), political party, a publisher, a newspaper etc.
  • What is known about the author?
    Tip: Enter “first name last name” in the search engine, for authors also e.g. B. on Amazon
  • Is there an imprint with contact person, address and contact details?
  • In the case of a university or authority , it can be assumed that the information published is better secured than that of a private individual.
  • a political party has a specific purpose in publishing information.
  • Renowned newspaper or dubious website? Well-known journalist or anonymous blogger ?
  • An existing imprint indicates a reputable website .


HOW?

  • What format does the offer have?
    Website, forum, blog, news site, database, wiki etc.
  • How professional is the offer?
    Current content? Spelling mistakes? Outdated or non-working links?
  • Links:
    Who links to the website? How reputable are these providers?
    Tip: Search operator link:URL finds websites that link to the website, e.g. E.g. link:www.mimikama.org
  • How extensive is the content on a topic?

  • A personal opinion has different qualities when evaluating than, for example, B. a lexicon .
  • Relevant or not depending on the topic . “Historical websites” that are no longer maintained for budget reasons can provide good and relevant information.
  • The more reputable institutions link to a source, the more credible it could be.
  • An introduction to a topic is to be evaluated differently and can contain errors much more often than a complex treatise by experts .


WHY?

  • Which target group is the website aimed at?
    Customers, children, young people, families, experts, companies?
  • What is the purpose of the website?
    What interest do the editors of the website have? Is the content intended to inform, entertain, influence or promote something?
  • Is there advertising?
    Is this clearly visible? Are advertising and information clearly separated from each other?
  • What is the writing style like?
    Academic with lots of technical terms, journalistic or simply understandable? Factual and informative or sensationalist and populist?
  • Which sources are referenced?
    Which website is linked to? What other sources of information are mentioned?
  • Is the content correct?

  • Depending on the target group , the author can present themselves and the content differently .
  • The purpose is not always easy to figure out; sometimes a specific purpose just needs to be assumed. to always take online content at face value
  • How a website is financed can provide information about its credibility. If the financiers are transparent, it could be more credible.
  • The content must usable for the respective target group . Texts for children must be designed differently than for academics.
  • Links are often the best quality criterion . Definitely a good way to get ahead in your search.
  • Check information randomly using other, reliable sources - especially on topics on which there are many different opinions or you are unsure.


Recognize fake news: become a fact checker in 5 steps!

In five simple steps you can check for yourself whether a report is true or just a fantasy of a more or less imaginative user.

The biggest enemy of fake news is media literacy!

There are just certain things you need to pay attention to when it comes to news and articles:

  1. Lots of OPINION, little content?
    If a report is very exaggerated, offers little content, but all the more an opinion of a certain political or religious direction, you should read more carefully to see whether this report contains credible sources at all.
  2. WHERE does a message come from?
    It is enough to take a look at the imprint of the site from which the report comes, if there is an imprint at all, because many sites that spread fake news hide the identity of their creators.
  3. Is the message also found on OTHER sites?
    If a report can only be found on this one site or on other sites that also have no imprint and tend to only publish reports against a certain political or religious tendency, it can be assumed that it is fake news.
  4. DO THE PICTURES MATCH the message?
    You often find “hybrid fakes”, i.e. fakes in which the pictures are real but the news is made up. It's the other way around: a real report, for example a police report about an attack, is taken, greatly exaggerated, some details are invented and images are used that have nothing to do with the report.
    To check something like this more closely, you can use the reverse image search from search engines such as Google or Yandex.
  5. Maybe it's just SATIRE?
    Unfortunately, the word “satire” is used excessively by fake news sites: people simply title an inflammatory article “satire” to protect themselves. On many sites the satire is obvious and funny, such as “Postillon”, while other sites only hide the information very briefly on the site or in the imprint, as they calculate that many users will believe the message and spread it further.

If you always keep these five points in mind before sharing a dubious message, you can proudly claim to have real media skills!


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Notes:
1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication. The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic. 2) Individual contributions were created through the use of machine assistance and were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )