Have you ever heard of a video being a “deep fake?” This type of media uses artificial intelligence to make realistic, but manipulated, content intended to deceive its viewer. For example, a video of a sitting president may be altered to appear to speak words not actually spoken in order to support a particular viewpoint. This is just one way that information can be intentionally falsified to create a fixed impression.

Obviously, we should fight distorted communication that directly harms public health, election outcomes, shifts stock prices or provokes international tensions. The indirect harm is that these deceptions erode our trust in institutions, society and one another. The spread of mis- and disinformation has affected our ability to improve community health. The CDC puts out messages with steps to help you decide if what you are reading about vaccines is true.

There is a distinction between misinformation and disinformation. Misinformation is false or inaccurate information; basically, getting the facts wrong. Disinformation is false information deliberately intended to mislead, such as intentionally making and distorting the facts. Mis- and disinformation have the potential to polarize societal opinion, to promote violent extremism and hate speech. Learning to spot, activate critical thinking skills and use fact checking when presented with these subtle fabrications is essential.

Why do some individuals trust fallacies in the first place? One example may be if a piece of farfetched news is aired, people who lack the time, interest or ability to critically evaluate this news turn to social media to quickly scan what others think. Individuals can also have faith in false information because of confirmation bias, where we naturally seek out ideas to confirm our prior beliefs. Due to the large amount of data we must process on a daily basis, it is easier to fit new knowledge into our already established world view than to create a new line of thought.

An added influence on belief construction surrounds the fact that news reports are delivered to elicit a strong emotional response, such as anger or fear. A heightened state of arousal increases the chances of creating stronger impressions regarding those newsflashes. (Martel, C., et al., Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications, Vol. 5, 2020). Or consider the illusory truth effect that involves repeated news stories that are downloaded and lodged in memory. Even with subsequent updates containing more accurate information, one is apt to believe that initial repetitive detail. This influence is why false news is best blocked immediately prior to its damaging effects. There is some effort to block false news on the part of social media platforms, but they are not really designed to address this type of information processing. So, it is truly the viewer’s responsibility to fact check the questionable material.

How can we take aim at misinformation to protect ourselves?

The following are a few interventions to fight the effects of data fraud:
1. By examining how our society consumes information
2. Scientists are nudging the public towards demanding greater accuracy
3. Warning labels are being used
4. By increasing our social norms to support regularly contesting falsehoods
5. Public educational videos that are short, cute and animated can be used
    to help folks spot and analyze data for accuracy
6. Teaching our young people scientific learning strategies and critical
    thinking to dismantle false information
7. By changing social media’s platforms and policies

With some of these aforementioned actions, we can begin to tackle this multi-faceted problem

Suzette Turner-Clark, LCSW-S, RPT/S, RYT-200