The rise of fake news has many people wondering if the news they’re getting today is real or fake, and wondering how they can identify fake news themselves.
Personally, I prefer news sources that have been around for at least 30 years and are boring as hell. If it’s a source that has its roots back in the days of Edward R. Murrow and Walter Kronkite and analyzes an issue in the most straightforward way – a.k.a. boring, but informative – and provides facts that are easy to prove as definitive facts (or at least take more than a 10 second Google search to disprove), then I’m in. My wife might complain and say that it feels like we’re 70 years old watching such shows, but that’s the point. I want my news to be informative and credible – not exciting or emotional.
But I digress . . .
With the current national conversation about fake news, people are looking for ways to identify it. National Public Radio and The News Literacy Project recently published a couple of really good guides for identifying fake news.
I personally like the Number 1 tip provided by The News Literacy Project: “Gauge your emotional reaction. Is it strong? Are you angry? Are you intensely hoping that the information turns out to be true? False?”
Check out The News Literacy Project’s tips for identifying fake news here.