Spotting Fake News

There are many news sources that produce fake news. Fake news goes viral because of conformation bias. On the website https://www.summer.harvard.edu/inside-summer/4-tips-spotting-fake-news-story it states "people are more likely to accept information that confirms their beliefs and dismiss information that does not". Websites put out fake news that pertains to certain beliefs going on. This allows the fake news to be spread based off of these opinions people have. Then the more people that come across this news the more it spreads and is believed. I wanted to research how to find out if you are reading fake news, because I find myself coming across fake news a lot and believing it. This Harvard student tells us exactly how to spot fake news. They start with "Vet the publisher's credibility" which means to look into the author of the website. We are always told to check our sources when writing papers and are told not to use wikipedia and websites similar to this for this exact reason. If the website is not coming from valid sources then don't believe it. Another tip is to "Pay attention to quality and timeliness" because one spelling error can point out a non credible source from a credible source. Valid sources take the time to write their stories and put a lot of effort into it. Also check the time the story was released as it could be old news they have tried to make look like current news. Also "Check the sources and citations" meaning check what sources this website is using to back up their story. If there is no sources at all or some that are also fake news then you should know not to believe it. Lastly "Ask the pros" meaning don't hesitate to ask if the source is credible. It is better to know than to guess and it end up being a fake story. This is important to realize as many of us just read a source of news, believe it, and then move on never looking back. The amount of false information we have been fed throughout the years is way too much. Always take the time to make sure your news is coming from a valid source so you are educating yourself with correct information. [376words, 1 image, 1 link, 5 quotations]