Alvia Lewis Frey column: A look at what didn’t happen this week in fake news – pharostribune.com

To be or not to be?

Is it fake news or real news?

Do we believe the facts in the stories we read and then share the bogus contents with unsuspecting family and friends?

When pondering such agonizing questions while reading stories on social media, one often wonders. I know I do.

If your inquiring mind wants to know the truth, I encourage you to check out Not Real News: A look at what didnt happen this week, compliments of the Associated Press.

The weekly article is a roundup of the most popular but completely untrue stories and visuals of the week.

None of these are legit, the Associated Press writes, even though shared widely on social media.

Which, of course, creates quite the conundrum.

From politics to all things COVID-19 (and everything in between), the AP doggedly sorts out the falsities.

Duping the public, however, has been around for a century or more.

Publishing fake news began in the early 19th century in earnest when newspapers began writing exposes and larger than life stories to increase circulation.

In 1835, the New York Sun published a series of six articles claiming that an alien civilization lived on the moon.

The astronomical observations were supposedly made by astronomer Sir John Herschel.

It was called the Great Moon Hoax. Duping the public, for sure.

These days, fake news has a life of its own. It is a 24/7 circulating quagmire of things that didnt happen.

And let me tell you that each week, a lot of things didnt happen.

Want the truth? Long for the real scoop? Tired of being hoodwinked?

Not Real News: A look at what didnt happen this week. Social media, beware!

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Alvia Lewis Frey is a columnist for the Pharos-Tribune. Contact her at alewisfrey@aol.com.

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Alvia Lewis Frey column: A look at what didn't happen this week in fake news - pharostribune.com