Catalan Journal of Communication & Cultural Studies - Current Issue
Disinformation, Fact-Checking and Civic Responsibility, Oct 2024
- Editorial
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- Viewpoints
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The consolidation of disinformation as a discipline: Reflections, challenges and perspectives for future action
More LessThis viewpoint presents an overview of the theoretical developments and main research lines in the areas of disinformation, fact-checking and civic responsibility. To that end, it analyses the academic response to this issue in order to consider the primary trends and map out these questions in general terms. Three areas for future research are identified: proposals to achieve territorial, social and economic cohesion to fight this threat; exploratory studies into the new state of information and media literacy; the development of artificial intelligence systems that are free of bias to assist journalists in the early detection of disinformation.
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Disinformation and climate crisis: Challenges and proposals for the future
Authors: Raúl Magallón-Rosa and Mabel Sánchez-TorresThis viewpoint analyses the relationship between the climate crisis and democratic quality, considering the various reports and studies that have been published on the role of disinformation in identifying the main global risks. To define the lines of action, a cross-cutting perspective is required to distinguish between obstructionist, denialist and sceptical narratives, but at the same time, another perspective, from the consequences for citizens in terms of apathy, disconnection or information anxiety. To this end, we define the main challenges in research on climate disinformation in the coming years and the types of social and academic response that have the greatest potential, including media literacy, specialized training for journalism and communication professionals, as well as the creation of institutional collaboration networks.
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- Articles
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Children and young people’s views on disinformation: A qualitative study from Portugal
Authors: Sara Pereira, Daniel Brandão, Mariana Menezes Neumann and Margarida ToscanoThis article aims to analyse the perspectives of children and young people about disinformation and news consumption. Based on the inputs of participants and their own perceptions on the matter we explore how the disinformation phenomenon is present in their daily lives, the different ways they experience and perceive its potential impact on society, as well as strategies adopted to tackle it. The analysis is based on data obtained from 38 focus groups held with 257 children and young people attending sixth (11–13 years old), ninth (14–16 years old) and twelfth (17–20 years old) grades in public schools in mainland Portugal. Results indicated that they have access to news regularly; however, it is not pursued to fulfil a particular purpose. Televised news constitutes the main source of news consumption. News broadcasted on TV are perceived as the most reliable source if compared to online information and social networks, which are considered more susceptible to fake news, although responses indicated that children and youth do not analyse information thoroughly. Disinformation is a relatively familiar issue for a portion of the participants but is seen as neither a problem nor a concern. There is a weak awareness about the impacts and consequences of this phenomenon, although there are differences according to age.
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Misleading content on encrypted platforms in Chile: WhatsApp vs. Telegram during constitutional elections
More LessMisinformation via instant messaging apps in electoral times has grown to be a problem in Latin America lately. Doing a content analysis on most circulated messages on 300 WhatsApp and 42 Telegram chats two months before an electoral process in Chile, we explore an initial approach to a comparative study on the patterns of political information interchange with a particular focus on the magnitude, types and content of misinformation circulated on both platforms in Chile within politically oriented right-leaning groups on both platforms. Among the differences between platforms, we find that while WhatsApp is being used by the groups aligned with more extreme right-wing positions to coordinate campaigns, debate the contingency and spread both info and misinformation, Telegram is centred on deeper conspiratorial groups that merge national and international contingency, UN rejection and anti-vaccine, anticommunist discourse and radical calls for action such as the mobilization for a military coup.
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Fuelling climate change disinformation: Global narratives distorting environmental risks in North America, Europe and Latin America
Authors: Dolors Palau-Sampio, Paz Crisóstomo Flores and Maria Josep Picó GarcésThe production and dissemination of disinformation is a global phenomenon in relation to sensitive issues such as climate change. This article analyses the activity (n = 419) of nine independent platforms debunking disinformation in North America, Europe and Latin America. Findings show that most fact-checking results were false or misleading (86.4%). Four main conclusions are drawn. Firstly, regardless of language, geographical or cultural differences, there is a consistent presence of manipulated content across countries, confirming the worrying levels of disinformation on climate change. Secondly, three central narratives for spreading disinformation have been identified: denial of scientific evidence, distortion of science and attribution of ulterior motives to action on climate change, often linked to conspiracy theories. Although there are differences in terms of representation, these narratives are prevalent in the three regions. Thirdly, these narratives revolve around topics such as meteorology, natural phenomena and temperature or the distortion of evidence about the effects of climate change. Finally, social media (52.5%) and websites and pseudo-media (25.8%) are the main sources of climate change disinformation.
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Artificial intelligence and disinformation literacy programmes used by European fact-checkers
More LessMedia literacy is a tool of prevention, which is useful in strengthening the resilience to disinformation. Artificial intelligence (hereinafter AI) offers solutions in the fight against fake news, but also implies ethical challenges regarding its use. This research explores the use of AI in Europe for verifying information, as well as the development of training programmes focused on AI literacy in relation to disinformation. To this end, the authors have used semi-structured interviews with verifiers who belong to the European Fact-Checking Standards Network. The results confirm that the literacy of fact-checkers is still in the nascent stages, and that the use of AI continues to evolve, especially around image verification. Although its implementation in newsrooms is quite common nowadays, there is still a lack of policies and principles needed in order to achieve a true symbiosis.
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Debunking practices and topics: Fact-checking agencies from the United Kingdom, France and Spain
Authors: Pablo Hidalgo-Cobo, Casandra López-Marcos and Belén Puebla-MartínezThis study focuses on debunking social media hoaxes as a critical issue for both fact checkers and democracies, as it is partially linked to the international and geopolitical scope of disinformation. The objective is to compare the debunking practices of seven fact-checking agencies from United Kingdom, France and Spain classified by its international, national or regional scope: Les Observateurs (France), Logically (United Kingdom), Les Vérificateurs (France), Full Fact (United Kingdom), Newtral (Spain), Ferret Fact (United Kingdom) and Verificat (Spain). Explorative, descriptive and inferential statistical quantitative research based on the analysis of content over eight hundred posts between July and August 2023 was conducted. The results partly confirm the objective of debunking as preventing the spread of a story, since the public health approach based on verification (labelling as ‘false’ rather offering in-depth explanation) is the prevailing trend, irrespective of the section. Nevertheless, the public health or public reason approach depends on the agency, as some agencies – including the two French – provide more detailed explanations with clear public reason approach, even in the treatment of international conflicts. Results also show significant homogeneity in terms of the major issues covered (inclusion and migration, environment, health and science, international conflicts, etc.), although the relative weight of each section varies significantly in each agency, including those of the same scope.
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Our life amid fake news: Self-perceived vulnerability to misinformation
More LessThe internet offers the ability to access a large amount of information quickly. However, this immediacy and oversaturation has negative aspects, such as informative disorders. This research aims to clarify whether the complex global landscape introduces scenarios which differ from one another by factors that we can point to as being responsible for different levels of vulnerability towards information disorders. Thus, this study applied a qualitative methodology based on the collection of relevant information of 50 participants, using online groups to generate a common space which offered a certain degree of intimacy. Within the results obtained, there is a remarkable hypersubjectivism amid all the groups that stands out above individual and/or ideological differences. Finally, this research demonstrates that citizens, regardless of their ideological positioning, perceive different factors which can make them more vulnerable to disinformation: the importance of fact-checking, abundance of information and immediacy.
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Parliamentary discourse and fact-checkers: Strategies of verification and political agenda
Authors: Eva Campos-Domínguez and Cristina Renedo-FarpónDisinformation, a pervasive issue in contemporary society, significantly influences citizens’ political decision-making. In response, fact-checking has emerged as a prominent movement, striving to enhance journalistic standards. Although this trend has sparked substantial academic research, only a few studies have thoroughly examined the impact of these journalistic practices on society. Moreover, while fact-checking agencies monitor parliamentary messages, research on the interplay between fact-checkers and legislative activity remains in its infancy. This research addresses the role of fact-checkers in the context of parliamentary disinformation in Spain and their presence in the speeches of MPs, as well as the importance given by fact-checking agencies themselves to parliamentary speeches and the perception citizens have when discussing disinformation. We are interested in knowing what presence they have in parliamentary speeches, what importance the fact-checkers themselves give to parliamentary speeches and what perception citizens have of them when disinformation in parliament is discussed. To this aim, we propose a mixed methodological approach in three phases: (1) documentary analysis of disinformation published in the Bulletins of Congress and the Spanish Parliament, as well as in the speeches made by the Joint Commission on National Security; (2) in-depth interviews with three journalists from the main Spanish verification agencies working on parliamentary activity: Newtral, Maldita and Efe Verifica; (3) citizen focus groups to address different questions about the ecosystem of information disinformation in Spain. The results show growing attention to disinformation in the parliamentary context; verifiers occupy a relevant space in the political discourse, even replacing mentions of traditional journalists when discussing disinformation, and this contrasts with the lack of recognition by citizens who, despite referring to it as a problem for democracy, barely mention the work of verification agencies in their discourse.
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The dark sides of sharenting
Authors: Andra Siibak and Keily Traks
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