Monthly Archives: April 2022

Opportunists and political actors fuse websites that host false stories with social media campaigns to spread the fake news, researchers say.

Adam Sandler is alive and well even though rumors of his death might just haunt the internet forever. False stories about the comedian's untimely demise have swirled around the internet for at least five years, according to fact-checking site Snopes, with the phrase "Adam Sandler dead" ricocheting across Twitter as recently as January.

The earliest story Snopes could find about the Billy Madison star's alleged death came in 2017 from a site called Link Beef. The site also published false rumors about the pilot of a missing Malaysia Air flight reappearing.

The prevalence of fake news sites became a theme of the 2016 US presidential election, when the internet was awash in links to websites looking to place ads next to false, emotionally appealing stories, as well as a coordinated misinformation effort attributed to the Russian government. The problem hasn't gone away. Sites post blatantly false stories in a cynical effort to generate money from ads or as part of a state-sponsored misinformation campaign designed to destabilize another country.

Now playing: Watch this: Fake News Real Talk: Your Brain Is Fooling You

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Facebook, Twitter, Reddit and other social media companies have taken heat for funneling people to fake news sites. The companies have taken steps to deemphasize stories that perpetuate misinformation and to hunt down networks of accounts created to boost the stories.

Still, false stories slip through. You're likely to see them during major world events like the Russian invasion of Ukraine, with misleading videos and social media posts falsely marked as coming from the war zone. Here's what you need to know about fake news.

"Fake news" refers to news stories that are made up, even if they contain a kernel of truth. Fake news sites exist solely to harvest clicks for ad money or push a government's agenda. By contrast, news organizations check facts, correct errors and generally pride themselves on brands distinguished by accuracy.

Mixed in with legitimate news on your social media feeds, fake news stories can be hard to spot if they aren't flagged by Facebook or Twitter. Sometimes networks of fictional people boost the visibility of fake news stories on social media by way of fake profiles. Social media companies call this type of promotion "coordinated inauthentic behavior."

It's a problem that hasn't gone away since 2016, says Renee DiResta, who researches online misinformation at the Stanford Internet Observatory.

"We see these tactics used in complementary ways," DiResta said. "Fake accounts and profiles will promote or boost the fake domain so that it looks like people are talking about it or excited about it."

The best starting place for checking out a suspicious news site is to look for more information about the outlet. You can check the site's About page, and you can also Google it. The site may be listed on Snopes as a purveyor of false rumors, or there may be a Wikipedia page devoted to the site that links to further sources.

You can also check to see if other news sites have similar stories. Sometimes a questionable news story will link to a source, but if not, you can search keywords from the story to look for additional coverage. If you find something on the same topic, check to see whether the story you saw first changed facts like names and dates or took quotes out of context.

Similarly, you can do a reverse image search to see whether a photo has been lifted from coverage of another story. Here's more information on how to do that.

Lastly, you can always call your public library to get help researching a news story you're not sure about.

Fake news stories often have another tell that should set off an alarm for you: They turn the volume up to 11 on the emotional tone of the story. Though plenty of true stories involve atrocities or injustices, fake news stories tend to lean hard into politically divisive topics to dial up outrage in readers, media literacy experts say.

According to DiResta, the Stanford misinformation researcher, both opportunists and state-affiliated organizations are in the business of publishing falsehoods in the guise of news sites.

Reporters traced some fake news sites that were prominent in 2016 to young people in Macedonia and Romania. They made ad money from site visitors' clicks. That kind of activity hasn't stopped, DiResta said.

US intelligence agencies also attributed a massive misinformation campaign during the 2016 election to the Russian government. The effort, which the intelligence community said was ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin, spread fake news and propaganda using state-run media outlets and networks of accounts posing as people in the US during the 2016 election.

The problem is global. Since 2016 Facebook has revealed networks of accounts tied to the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt; public relations firms operating on behalf of political campaigns in Myanmar and Ukraine; and, in Iran, misinformation campaigns designed to widen political divides in various countries.

Read this article:

Fake News Sites Keep Serving Up False and Misleading Stories. Here's How to Spot Them - CNET

A RAND study released this week offers more evidence that both-sidesism does not belong in an honest discussion of fake news and propaganda in the U.S. People on the Right are simply more apt to fall for it than those on the Left, the research shows, and for a number or reasons.

Susceptibility to conspiracy theories and fake news has already been linked by researchers to people in minority groups and lower income brackets. And higher income, higher education levels, and whiteness have been linked to greater resistance to such beliefs. But linking the appetite for, and susceptibility to, fake news and propaganda to Republicanism has until now been elusive.

We found some of it on both sides, on the left and the right, says RAND researcher and report author Luke Matthews. But we found more of it on the Trump voting Republican side.

The researchers surveyed 1,333 Americans from a carefully balanced set of demographic groups from February 26 through March 13, 2019. Respondents who had internet access took an online survey; those who didnt were provided a tablet computer on which to respond to questions.

RAND sat out to find what kinds of cognitive bias and reasoning functionality were most reliably associated with susceptibility to misinformation in different kinds of people.

Cognitive biases are systematic patterns of deviation from norm and/or rationality in judgment, says the Handbook of Evolutionary Psychology. RAND screened for a number of bias types, including ingroup bias, which refers to tendencies to lean toward beliefs favored by groups that share a language, religion, or nationality.

The researchers also looked for connections between peoples comfort level with numbers, or science, or magical thinking and the propensity for believing misinformation. As it turned out, Matthews tells me, it was the presence or absence of these reasoning abilities that provided the best predictors of peoples susceptibility to misinformation.

It foundnot surprisinglythat people who demonstrated more numeric and scientific literacy, and less magical reasoning, were less likely to swallow misinformation and disinformation. And it found these people collected in certain demographic and political groups.

Resistance to Truth Decay . . . was associated with having a higher income, identifying as White, voting for Clinton in 2016, and being less religious, the report states. By truth decay RAND means, broadly, a willingness to believe falsehoods, and a resistance to authoritative sources of information such as scientists and other experts.

The reasoning processes that are predictive of belief in things like birtherism, plandemic, and trutherism are not gained or lost suddenly with the support of a particular candidate or cause, the report stresses, but rather are developed over an individuals lifetime and are all at least somewhat adaptive . . . This, of course, points to the role of the education system to teach things like critical thinking and media literacy to children and adolescents early and often.

Society needs to be better at developing informed and critically thinking citizens who can appropriately process the rapid media environments in which information consumers must now operate, the report authors write.

RANDs GOP-misinformation connection is made even more credible because the RAND researchers didnt go out looking for that specifically. Thats not what we set out to study but thats what we found, Matthews tells Fast Company. He said his team had to study all possible connections between demographic and political groups to make sure the connections they found could not be undercut by claims that truth decay is actually caused by some factor the group didnt study.

The report is part of RANDs Countering Truth Decay initiative, which considers the diminishing role of facts and analysis in political and civil discourse and the policymaking process. The original report in the series was published in January 2018 and laid out a research agenda for studying and developing solutions to the Truth Decay challenge.

We need to have these political conversations and debates, Matthews says. We can have the debate about politics and policy, we can have political disagreements and disagreements over values, but we need to have a basic agreement about what the facts actually are.

This aspect of American life, the capacity for citizens to argue well and respectfully, is arguably what has made American democracy work. That public trust has been badly diminished.

Politics has gotten so hyperpartisan, Matthews says. Its gotten people detached from what facts actually are.

Original post:

RAND finds that Republicans are more prone to misinformation - Fast Company

news, federal-election, clive palmer, UAP, united Australia party, greens, preferences, election 2022, labor, the coalition

Clive Palmer has backtracked on comments he made suggesting he would rather preference the Greens over the Coalition and Labor, claiming the statement was "tongue-in-cheek". The United Australia Party chairman, who is pumping around $40 million into his election campaign, last week told the National Press Club the party would place the three at the bottom of its preference list. Mr Palmer suggested the UAP could punish incumbency by listing the Greens above the major parties, who he blamed for wracking up unprecedented debt. But in a statement on Monday, he claimed the comments were "tongue-in-cheek" and labelled reporting on them "fake news". "The notion that United Australia Party would preference The Greens is as ludicrous as them giving preferences to us," he said. "I made a tongue-in-cheek remark because I was responding to an ABC journalist that, like the ABC, I may preference the Greens before the others. "The fact of the matter is the party executive has unanimously agreed that The Greens will be last." Mr Palmer did indeed make the aside to ABC political editor Andrew Probyn, having initially dodged multiple questions over where the UAP's preferences would flow. But the magnate, who has railed against COVID-19 vaccines and government debt, explained in detail his reasons for preferring the Greens. "From my personal perspective, I think I'd put the Greens ahead of Liberal and Labor," he said. "That's my personal perspective, because they haven't been in government and they haven't been responsible for this debt. The debt we see is causing the main problem in Australia. "So, like the ABC, I'll be putting the Greens ahead of Liberal and Labor." READ MORE: But Mr Palmer muddied the waters by accepting a handful of Liberal senators were more sympathetic to the UAP, in an apparent reference to Gerard Rennick and Alex Antic, who both threatened to withdraw their vote over vaccine mandates. "There are Liberal members of parliament who have crossed the floor with [UAP leader] Craig Kelly. That's on the record," he said. "There are other Liberals who have supported him and people who have sponsored some of our bills that we put up like, George Christensen. Those people will be favourable when it comes to us." The UAP chairman had initially claimed the party could not confirm its preferences, within days of an election being called, because "we don't know who's standing". "We haven't determined that because not only in a political party. Even though I'm the money bags, it doesn't mean I make all the decisions," he said.

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Clive Palmer has backtracked on comments he made suggesting he would rather preference the Greens over the Coalition and Labor, claiming the statement was "tongue-in-cheek".

The United Australia Party chairman, who is pumping around $40 million into his election campaign, last week told the National Press Club the party would place the three at the bottom of its preference list.

But in a statement on Monday, he claimed the comments were "tongue-in-cheek" and labelled reporting on them "fake news".

"The notion that United Australia Party would preference The Greens is as ludicrous as them giving preferences to us," he said.

"I made a tongue-in-cheek remark because I was responding to an ABC journalist that, like the ABC, I may preference the Greens before the others.

"The fact of the matter is the party executive has unanimously agreed that The Greens will be last."

UAP chairman Clive Palmer has walked back comments on referencing the Greens. Picture: James Croucher

Mr Palmer did indeed make the aside to ABC political editor Andrew Probyn, having initially dodged multiple questions over where the UAP's preferences would flow.

But the magnate, who has railed against COVID-19 vaccines and government debt, explained in detail his reasons for preferring the Greens.

"From my personal perspective, I think I'd put the Greens ahead of Liberal and Labor," he said.

"That's my personal perspective, because they haven't been in government and they haven't been responsible for this debt. The debt we see is causing the main problem in Australia.

"So, like the ABC, I'll be putting the Greens ahead of Liberal and Labor."

But Mr Palmer muddied the waters by accepting a handful of Liberal senators were more sympathetic to the UAP, in an apparent reference to Gerard Rennick and Alex Antic, who both threatened to withdraw their vote over vaccine mandates.

"There are Liberal members of parliament who have crossed the floor with [UAP leader] Craig Kelly. That's on the record," he said.

"There are other Liberals who have supported him and people who have sponsored some of our bills that we put up like, George Christensen. Those people will be favourable when it comes to us."

The UAP chairman had initially claimed the party could not confirm its preferences, within days of an election being called, because "we don't know who's standing".

"We haven't determined that because not only in a political party. Even though I'm the money bags, it doesn't mean I make all the decisions," he said.

More here:

'Fake news': Clive Palmer backtracks on his suggestion United Australia Party will preference Greens over the Coalition and Labor - Campbelltown...

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Online news law to create a framework for media outlets to collectively negotiate compensation deals with online platforms

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Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez will introduce legislation today to make digital giants compensate Canadian media outlets for reusing their news content.

The bill is expected to be modelled on an Australian law making tech companies such as Google pay for news content on their platforms.

Rodriguez has previously said the bill is a priority, and that it will help support Canadas media industry and combat fake news circulating on the internet.

The online news law will create a framework for professional media outlets to collectively negotiate compensation deals with online platforms.

Rodriguez said in the last 15 years, about 450 Canadian news outlets have closed, with the vast chunk of advertising revenues going to big digital companies.

At a virtual conference in February, the minister said the bill being prepared would help preserve Canadas independent media, which he said is in crisis.

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Law to help news industry and combat fake news to be tabled today - National Post

Official clarity on Fake News of Salaar in circulation

Recently there was a strong buzz in the film industry that the glimpse of Salaar will be attached with the upcoming Pan India film KGF: Chapter 2 which is releasing on 14th April 2022. It was heard that the teaser will give a glimpse of the world of Salaar to the audiences. But today morning the makers of Salaar gave official clarity on this fake news by saying that the rumor of Salaar glimpse along with KGF: Chapter 2 is false. Makers are waiting for the right time to announce about Salaar. This news has disappointed the Prabhas fans who were eagerly waiting for the glimpse of their favorite actor.

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Helmed by Prashanth Neel, and produced by Vijay Kiragandur under the banner Hombale Films, KGF : Chapter 2 starring Yash, Srinidhi Shetty, Sanjay Dutt, Raveena Tandon and Prakash Raj, is a sequel to the 2018 blockbuster action drama KGF: Chapter 1.

Coming to Salaar, it is helmed by Prashanth Neel and has Prabhas and Shruti Haasan, is backed by KGFs producer Vijay Kiragandur under the banner of Hombale Films. Prithviraj Sukumaran will be seen in a pivotal role.

KGF : Chapter 2 will compete with Vijay Starrer Beast and Shahid Kapoor starrer Jersey at the box office.

Original post:

Official clarity on Fake News of Salaar in circulation - Tollywood

SydneyAn Australian aviation company says it has received more than 100 threats following an online conspiracy theory that its pilots unleashed a flooding disaster by cloud seeding.

Conspiracy theorists spread the false claims after weeks of torrential rains led to deadly east coast floods over the past two months, engulfing homes and sweeping cars from the roads.

Posts shared online alleged aerial survey pilots from Handel Aviation caused a second deluge in the flood-ravaged New South Wales town of Lismore on March 31 by cloud seedingdispersing a substance into the clouds to prompt rain.

A pilot from Handel Aviation in Cessna 210N Centurion VH-JIL did a breakfast time cloud seeding run over Lismore South & Ballina today while sightseeing the massive flood below him, one widely shared post reads.

The flight path of the Handel Aviation aircraft VH-JIL crisscrossing over flooded areas was also shared online by Australian fashion designer Alice McCall alongside claims it was dropping chemicals to activate rain.

Handel Aviation operator Mark Handel told AFP on Thursday that the company does not seed clouds.

The flight was collecting images for aerial maps provided to Australian mapping company, NearMap, he said.

Handel Aviation operates aerial photography aircraft only. Our recent flights over flooded areas of NSW and QLD are in response to the floods, a statement on the Handel Aviation website reads.

NearMap confirmed to AFP the photos taken by Handel Aviation were commissioned to map disaster-affected areas for insurers and emergency services.

These aerial captures are commissioned after major weather catastrophes and natural disasters, including following the recent east coast flooding, the NearMap spokesman said.

Threatening stuff

The claims circulating online led to more than 100 threats being sent to Handel Aviation, despite it explaining the purpose of the flights on the contact page of the companys website.

We had really violent threatening stuff coming through. Like: we have the pilots names, we know where you live, youre going to pay for this, kind of stuff, Handel told AFP.

Handel said he tasked his operations manager, Anthony Berko, with responding to each email and calling people who provided their phone numbers.

Some of those he contacted were surprised or angry, Berko said.

But others were distressed, telling the experienced pilot they had lost everything during the floods and thought the company was responsible.

They needed a shoulder to cry on and hear their story. Theyve basically lost everything and then someone has then said heres your answer, Berko said.

Despite the online claims, cloud seeding is not responsible for any of the east coast floods, said weather modification expert Simon Siems.

Siems, a professor who leads a Monash University team studying clouds and precipitation, said the practice is not conducted in the Northern Rivers region and it cannot cause flooding.

Cloud seeding is not that effective, people do it only under very special circumstances, he said.

See the article here:

Pilots threatened on flood fake news - manilastandard.net