Research and Course Guides: Voting and Elections: Media Literacy for Voters

Terms to Know

Misinformation - Inadvertent sharing of false information

Disinformation - Deliberate creation and/or sharing information known to be false

Definitions by Claire Wardle from "Fake News: It's Complicated," 2017

4 Moves and a Habit

The Habit: Check Your emotions - If you are having a strong emotional reaction, whether it’s anger, frustration, or validation, take a moment and pause. At these times your critical perspective might be diminished when you should be fact-checking. Slow down and use your moves.
Move 1: Check for Previous Work - Many provocative claims on the internet have already been fact-checked or researched. News coverage, trusted online sites, such as Politifact or Snopes, may have a synthesis of the evidence readily available.
Move 2: Go Upstream to the Source - Check the embedded web links or perform a search to find the original or search for the source of the information.
Move 3: Read Laterally - Not all sources are created equal. If you are unsure of the quality of the source, read laterally across other trustworthy sites to find more information about the platform or author.
Move 4: Circle Back - Sometimes reading laterally will suggest that a source is not accurate, is more complex than you thought, or leads to a dead end. Stop and use what you have learned to begin a better-informed search.

Four Moves and a Habit Infographic from AAC&U

From Mike Caulfield's “Four Moves & A Habit” strategy from his OER Web Literacy for Student Fact-Checkers (CC BY 4.0)

Fact-Checking Websites

Factcheck.org
"FactCheck.org is a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania. The APPC was established by publisher and philanthropist Walter Annenberg to create a community of scholars within the University of Pennsylvania that would address public policy issues at the local, state and federal levels."
Fact Checker (Washington Post)
"The purpose of this website, and an accompanying column in the Sunday print edition of The Washington Post, is to “truth squad” the statements of political figures regarding issues of great importance, be they national, international or local. It’s a big world out there, and so we rely on readers to ask questions and point out statements that need to be checked."
Flackcheck.org
"Headquartered at the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania, FlackCheck.org is the political literacy companion site to the award-winning FactCheck.org. The site provides resources designed to help viewers recognize flaws in arguments in general and political ads in particular. Video resources point out deception and incivility in political rhetoric."
Politifact
Politifact is a fact-checking website that rates the accuracy of claims by elected officials and others on its Truth-O-Meter.
Snopes.com
"Snopes got its start in 1994, investigating urban legends, hoaxes, and folklore. Founder David Mikkelson, later joined by his wife, was publishing online before most people were connected to the internet. As demand for reliable fact checks grew, so did Snopes. Now it’s the oldest and largest fact-checking site online, widely regarded by journalists, folklorists, and readers as an invaluable research companion."

Misleading News and How to Spot Trolls

Spot the Troll
"The quiz where YOU examine images of real social media content and decide whether it's from a legitimate account or an internet troll." Resource by Clemson University Media Forensics Hub.
Beyond "Fake News": 10 Types of Misleading News
Misleading news is complicated. Check out this link to learn about ten types of misleading news.