What's fake news? Fake news refers to events that never occurred, or it uses quotes that were never said.

As an example, Donald Trump supposedly “admitting” that he is “Jewish” is fake news-he never said it; it’s a fake quote, it’s made up, and it never happened. Further, “fake news” is intentional— it’s not someone making an innocent mistake (like saying someone’s name wrong); it’s done to

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INFORM • consider the source

• look at the author

• read the date

1PAY ATTENTION TO:

• bad grammar

• full article, not just the headline

2SEARCH

• search what else is being said about the topic

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FIGHTING FAKE NEWS SEPTEMBER 17, 2019

Why to teach your kid about fake news?

Fake news is tricking children! Teach them to be smarter!

manipulate or misinform us, often to serve a particular political agenda. So why do people get fooled by it? It reinforces something people already believe, or tells them something they think must be true because it sounds good to them. Also, fake news isn’t really news at all. It might look legitimate, but it tells about events that never occurred, or uses quotes that were never really said. 


Fake news and its effects on kids. Fake news is affecting all the categories of people but especially kids. Why we should teach them to learn how to figure out which information is true or fake?

You would think that kids, still in the learning process, would not have access to fake news and if so, not that much power to spread them. Children consume news every day, from

learning at school to hearing the latest in music, film, gaming and sport. And they are creators of news too. Anyone who has a social media profile can create news. According to a large-scale study by Stanford Graduate School Education, young people at every stage from middle school to college were consistently unable to differentiate news from advertising or false information from the truth. Having this problem, they are spreading fake news unintentionally through social networks.

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FIGHTING FAKE NEWS SEPTEMBER 17, 2019

HOW TO PROTECT YOUR KIDS FROM FAKE NEWS: Talk with your children regularly about being safe and smart online, and make sure they know the door is always open to ask any questions they might have. Start conversations about stories you see on social media or photoshopped images on the cover of a magazine. Help kids use secure, reputable sites and be wary of social media accounts or websites that give misleading, inappropriate, or false information—some of which may appear enticing. 

While you can’t always be present to make sure kids stay safe online, you can set them up for success by teaching them how to spot fake news and any unreliable or inappropriate sites. Kids can “Be Internet Awesome” with your help and guidance.

T O O O L D T O A V O I D

F A K E N E W S ?

S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 9 | V O L U M E 1F I G H T I N G F A K E N E W S

Elderly people using social media?

One of the biggest nightmares of

the youth in the 21th century, I

guess.

The majority of them are struggling

with digitalization and they became

the target of fake news.

To begin with, a lot of old people

start using Internet day by day and

they are facing with a flood of

information. In my opinion, it is too

intensive for them. They all grown

up reading newspapers, and

watching TV and most of them think

that what is on the television must

be true.

Unfortunately, most of

them fall for clickbait titles

and they unintentionally

share a myriad of

misleading pictures, posts

and news. They become

victims of fake news. They

are also the main target of

every fake charity

fundraising because of their

wealth and innocence

S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 9 | V O L U M E 1F I G H T I N G F A K E N E W S BY DANIEL FEJEL TOTH

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We, the youth, the

representatives of the

young generation

should help them

understanding how

fake news works. We

always teach them

how to use digital

devices, but they also

have to learn about

how to avoid falling

for scams. They have

to understand that

there are a lot of

misleading things on

the internet and not

everything what it

looks like. There are

some courses,

especially for the

elderly where they

learn about the usage

of computer,

programs and

websites.

In conclusion, they have

just entered to the

digital world, so we have

to be patient and

supportive in order to

help them become a

confident user.

I strongly believe that if

we put the topic of fake

news into these lectures

that can raise awareness

among them. Critical

thinking is an essential

part of using social

media.

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C O N S P I R A C Y T H E O R I E S

A N D F A K E N E W S .

A R E T H E Y T H E S A M E ?

B Y V A S I L I K I K A R A N T Z A V E L O U

S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 9 | V O L U M E 1F I G H T I N G F A K E N E W S

Gossip and hearsay has been

proven to be of great

importance through the

history of human existence,

since it brought people

together, helped us develop

trusting relationships and,

subsequently, contributed

to the survival and evolution

of the human civilization.

News was everywhere, some

of which might have been

fake, as well. So, why do we

care so much about fake

news these days?

Taking conspiracy theories and

fake news as one is a common

misconception that people

believe. These two senses are

close and they share some

similarities, however they must

not be equated. By definition,

fake news are disseminated

information that contains false

facts or invalid incidents and

they can be used for several

purposes. Sometimes people

start spreading rumors with no

vicious aim.

The rapid changes in the news

transmission due to mass media

and the internet has affected how

we perceive news and information

in general. In the heart of this

groundbreaking situation we live in,

the news that are communicated

are not always cross-checked and

people receive amounts of

information that are so huge that

they cannot face them critically,

due to lack of time for processing.

In such cases, some people or

groups of people take advantage of

the situation and promote or plant

invalid information with a deeper

purpose. Such events can easily

lead the public opinion towards a

specific direction and they can be

used for profit reasons. 5

On the other hand, conspiracy theories

work in a deeper, explanatory level

and they usually invoke a conspiracy

by sinister and powerful actors. They

rise during unstable or ambiguous

times and they thrive because they

offer some explanation to people who

feel lost in a certain situation that they

cannot fully understand. For example,

theories like these were noticed

during the World War II, while most of

the population in Europe had been

living in fear and terror. They couldn’t

find a satisfying explanation for what

was happening and the knowledge

they had regarding politics was very

limited. So rumors started spreading

regarding these theories and they got

much attention from big audiences,

who thought that these narratives

were actually true.

To sum up with, fake news can be used

as tools for the spreading of conspiracy

theories. The latter are supported by a

specific state of mind, a mindset that

serves the final purpose of the so called

theory, and people who believe these

theories perceive the world and many

aspects of their every day life as proof

for the existence of conspiracies against

them from a small group, or elite. This is

called circular reasoning, where

everything is considered to be evidence

that empowers the so-called “truth”. Our

world was radically demystified during

the Enlightment but never created

concrete epistemology in order to build

on it and people still feel lost in this

unstable existential condition.

Conspiracy theories can give answers to

some important concerns that trouble

people and they create links between

ideas and events, and fake news can be

used in order to promote this mentality.

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F A K E N E W S I N H I S T O R Y :

T H E M O O N H O A X

S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 9 | V O L U M E 1F I G H T I N G F A K E N E W S

Every person in his or her

life will come across "fake

news". Sometimes false

information can totally

change our life and turn it

upside down, but fake

news is not only today’s

problem. In the past,

information was filtered

through traditional media,

such as newspapers and

magazines on the one

hand, and television and

radio bulletins on the

other.

These outlets were meeting

legal and professional

standards to report the

facts, although, in the case

of the written press, they

were free to shift them in

line with their differing

political allegiances. People

used to read them to be

entertained, not informed,

that is why sometimes the

newspapers and the

magazines created fake,

even ridiculous news, for

people to buy.

S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 9 | V O L U M E 1F I G H T I N G F A K E N E W SS E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 9 | V O L U M E 1F I G H T I N G F A K E N E W S BY ANASTASIJA BAJEVA

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S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 9 | V O L U M E 1F I G H T I N G F A K E N E W S

On the August 21st 1835, The

New York Sun published a

series of articles about the

discovery of life on the moon.

These were falsely attributed to

a well-known astronomer of

that time, named Sir John

Herschel. The article reported

that Herschel had made these

discoveries using new “hydro-

oxygen magnifiers” and went

on to describe in believable

scientific details how the

discovery was made. Bizarre life

forms, inhabitants of the moon

were described, painting an

imaginary picture.

"Of animals, he classified

nine species of mammals,

and five of ovipara. Among

the former is a small kind of

reindeer, the elk, the moose,

the horned bear, and the

biped beaver. The last

resembles the beaver of the

earth in every other respect

than in its destitution of a

tail, and its invariable habit

of walking on only two feet.

It carries its youngster in its

arms like a human being

and moves with an easy

gliding motion."

The point in that story is that

after accomplishing their

goal of getting many new

subscribers to their

newspaper in August, the

paper quietly announced in

September that the story

had been nothing more

than a hoax.

Whether you are skimming

through historical

newspaper archives or

browsing through your

Facebook feed, don’t believe

everything you read. Check

your facts with reliable

sources and be skeptical of

sensational claims.

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InformPay attention to:SearchWhat's fake news?Fake news refers to events that never occurred, or it uses quotes that were never said.how to protect your kids from fake news:Fake news and its effects on kids.Fake news is affecting all the categories of people but especially kids. Why we should teach them to learn how to figure out which information is true or fake?