Experts see the greatest danger to social cohesion and radicalization through disinformation!
A new study by the Vodafone Foundation shows that around three quarters of experts in Germany see disinformation as the greatest threat to social cohesion and the radicalization of individuals. Mimikama also took part in this study, which has now been published.
According to experts, WhatsApp, Facebook and YouTube in particular contribute the most to the spread of misinformation and disinformation, but the importance of the messenger Telegram has increased. According to those surveyed, older people in particular are significantly more at risk than young people of falling victim to false information - at the same time, there are hardly any offers for an older audience.
In Germany and worldwide, an increase in disinformation has been observed online since the beginning of the pandemic. At the same time, concerns are increasing about the influence of fake news on the results of the federal election, which will take place in a few weeks. These are the results of a survey of over 60 experts on the topic of disinformation on behalf of the Vodafone Foundation Germany.
Experts see the greatest danger in the increasing spread of disinformation as the polarization of societies and the radicalization of individuals. Two thirds of those surveyed also expect citizens to be politically influenced by false news. However, the experts believe that the risk of direct manipulation of elections is less pronounced in Germany than in a global comparison. They cite the social media platforms WhatsApp, Facebook and YouTube as drivers of disinformation. Despite the lower number of users, the experts also consider the messenger Telegram to be very relevant for passing on fake news.
Deep fakes are of little importance, but older people are particularly at risk
Despite being frequently discussed in the media, falsifications caused by artificial intelligence, such as deep fakes, still play a minor role in Germany. According to experts, the majority of disinformation in Germany consists of distorted representations or claims without any factual basis. The risk that disinformation campaigns, which are mostly spread on social media, will be believed is particularly high among older people. There are also not enough offers and educational work on the subject of fake news in this age group. In order to counteract the increasing amount of disinformation, those surveyed see the social media platforms themselves and educational institutions as having a particular responsibility. Above all, strengthening media literacy in general, further expanding the combat mechanisms on social platforms and teaching skills in dealing with media in schools are relevant measures.
Role of traditional media in disinformation
It is generally known that the traditional media plays a major role in increasing the reach of fake news, which is also confirmed by the vast majority of experts surveyed. Nevertheless, according to experts, the media have not yet developed sufficient strategies in recent years to address disinformation in their reporting - without running the risk that citizens will believe the false information. Among other things, the respondents suggested that journalists should be given more information about how to deal with disinformation in a professional context. Although journalists have basic tools for checking misinformation, they often lack experience in dealing with the delicate mechanisms of disinformation attempts, the study states.
Experts rate the term “fake news” as unsuitable
Basically, the experts judge the term “fake news” to be unsuitable. Although the term is firmly established in everyday language, it is not clearly defined. According to the majority of experts, the term is too imprecise and burdened by its use as a political battle term to discredit others. Instead, they advocate terms or pairs of terms such as “disinformation” and “misinformation” or “false information”. Journalists should use the term “fake news” sparingly, despite its signaling factor, the study recommends. The extent to which dealing with disinformation actually leads to changes in attitudes or behavior is cited by the experts as an area in which reliable findings are still missing.
You can find the entire study, in which Mimikama also took part, on the vodafone-stiftung.de
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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 )