Category Archives: Fake News

Published On 18 January,202208:46 pm

Fake news about closure of schools begin to spread

LAHORE (Dunya News) The fake news about the closure of schools have begun to spread.

Taking it to twitter, NCOC declared the news regarding the closure of primary schools as fake news. Moreover, it stated that the false news is being conveyed through a fake account of NCOC against which an operation has been launched by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Cyber Crime Wing.

Earlier today, pertaining to the rising COVID-19s Omicron cases across the country, the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) has proposed to open the educational institutes three days a week.

The second important meeting of the NCOC was held in which the situation of educational institutions was also reviewed while various proposals regarding new restrictions were considered in the meeting.

Moreover, it was discussed in the meeting that a proposal to make schools online for seven days in Islamabad was also considered.

According to sources, the NCOC meeting was briefed on the ongoing testing in educational institutions. It was decided to seal the educational institutions which did not implement the SOPs while emphasis was laid on measures for compulsory vaccination of students and teachers in the educational institutions.

Earlier today, Pakistan reported 10 deaths in the last 24 hours by novel coronavirus as the number of positive cases has surged to 1,333,521. The nationwide tally of fatalities has jumped to 29,029.

According to the latest figures by the National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) 5,034 persons tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 24 hours.

Province-wise Details

Punjab remains the worst-hit province in terms of deaths followed by Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Till now 13,091 individuals have lost their lives to the epidemic in Punjab, 7,703 in Sindh 5,963 in KP, 969 in Islamabad, 749 in Azad Kashmir, 367 in Balochistan, and 187 in GB.

Furthermore 505,930 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Sindh, 454,372 in Punjab 182,419 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 111,855 in Islamabad, 34,770 in Azad Kashmir 33,729 in Balochistan and 10,446 in Gilgit-Baltistan.

Tests and Recoveries

Pakistan has so far conducted 24,239,761 coronavirus tests and 53,253 in the last 24 hours. 1,264,611 patients have recovered in the country whereas 827 patients are in critical condition.

Positivity Ratio

The COVID-19 positivity ratio was recorded at 9.45 percent.

Vaccine Statistics

So far, 102,107,155 people have received their first dose of coronavirus vaccine including 318,721 in last 24 hours.

77,485,124 citizens have been fully vaccinated while 442,884 received their second dose in last 24 hours. The number of total administered doses has reached to 168,365,369 with 784,082 in the last 24 hours.

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Fake news about closure of schools begin to spread - Dunya News

The Karnataka Department of Health and Family Welfare Services on Tuesday warned against sharing of misinformation and/ non-factual data.

In an official statement the state health department said that anybody found spreading misinformation would face governmental action as per Section 54 of Disaster Management Act, 2005 and Section 4(k) of Karnataka Epidemic Diseases Act, 2020.

These actioned would be valid in all social media platforms as well as media houses.

The state government said that spreading of misinformation or non-factual data would be deemed as an offence and the offender would be penalized.

The Section 54 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005 , says "Whoever makes or circulates a false alarm or warning as to disaster or its severity or magnitude, leading to panic, shall on conviction, be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to one year or with fine. Whoever makes or circulates a false alarm or warning as to disaster or its severity or magnitude, leading to panic, shall on conviction, be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to one year or with fine."

The health department also mentioned, It has come to the notice of Government that few medical practitioners, while communicating to public on various media platforms, are giving incomplete, inaccurate and unsubstantiated information about #COVID19."

The state cited their decision to penalise such actions to the fact that some medical practitioners or health workers have been giving incomplete, inaccurate and unsubstantiated information to the patients.

Such actions have the potential of creating frenzy among citizens and the state's action aims to prevent that.

The Commissionerate of Health and Family Services said some medical practitioners were allegedly giving incomplete, inaccurate and unsubstantiated information about Covid-19. "Such misinformation leads to confusion in public at large on the prevailing Covid scenario in the State and encourages them to deviate from well laid out guidelines issued by the health and revenue authorities," the statement said.

According to health officials, a few doctors recently appeared in some news channels and allegedly gave statements contrary to the facts and had the potential to trigger panic among people about COVID-19.

During the third wave of coronavirus that has grappled the country, Karnataka remains the second highest contributor, after Maharashtra.

The state logged 27,156 new Covid-19 cases, 7827 recoveries and 14 Covid-19 related deaths on Monday.

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Karnataka govt warns against spreading fake news, rumours on Covid-19. Read here - Mint

This initiative has already been sent to the Culture, Arts and Communications Commission of the Chamber of Deputies, where it will be processed in the next legislative period slated for March.

At present, it is fundamental to properly regulate these platforms for them to fulfill their function and guarantee true information, without fake news and any disqualifications or, at least, with the right to defend oneself if this happens, Tomas Hirsch told BioBio radio.

The bill stipulates several regulations to guarantee transparency on social media and that digital platforms, with an effect on over 10 percent of the population, are registered as partnerships in the country or have a legal representative in case of a conflict.

It also favors establishing a mechanism to eliminate information that affects people or certain communities and calls on companies to be transparent regarding the use of algorithms.

The bill includes fines for the platform or social network that does not comply with this regulation.

Misinformation and fake news permeated Chiles last presidential election campaign.

Several attacks were aimed at discrediting President-Elect Gabriel Boric and also the Constituent Assembly, in charge of drafting a constitution that will replace the one in force since the time of the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990).

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Chilean deputies are proposing a bill against fake news on Internet - Prensa Latina

Hearing the term fake news may cause a visceral response in todays political climate. With the abundance of media outlets available on so many different platforms, its become difficult to know what to believe.

What about fake news on your dairy?

My guess is your first response might be related to detractors that wish to push a false narrative about the way we manage cows and produce milk. That is not the fake news I want to dig into today. It is more the question of what you believe about your own dairy that may in fact not be true.

Asking the same question

In the routine analysis of our clients farms, I ask myself the same question over and over, What do I believe to be true about some aspect of the dairy that is actually not true? It is an investigation technique that is helpful in digging deeper into how cows are performing on a dairy. We work in a variable biological system with an unknown number of influences that truly impact the cow and the bottom line. A systematic process to discover these untruths may be the key to the next 5 pounds of milk.

The number of information sources that could be lying to us would rival the number of various media outlets on TV or social media. A modern dairy is full of information-gathering efforts from humans to instruments that measure everything from the weather to the butterfat levels in the milk. These will eventually tell us an untruth. We must approach this information with great care.

Potentially questionable information sources

Consider an example of a corn silage crop year change where the cows just arent getting the job done. Even if you sampled the new silage, maybe that sample taken soon after opening the pit isnt representative of the entire pile. So, the first potential source of bad info is forage analysis information including a full lab report or even an on-farm moisture test. Verify and reverify, especially on a new crop silage.

Lets take that a step further. Suppose the feeders are doing a great job checking silage moisture and delivering it on time each morning to the office. But, in the hustle and bustle of a busy dairy office, the changes werent being updated in the feeding software. Dont say never on my place . . . it happens.

Two answers to the same question

Cow movements on a dairy are an integral part of the yearly life cycle of a cow. The days in milk (DIM) when these moves occur are planned for various reasons. I can remember a conversation with a client regarding the DIM when cows leave the fresh pen. This matters when I build the best ration for this pen.

The fresh cows graduate from the fresh pen at 12 to 15 DIM, said the producer. This tells me to really focus on diet goals related to the just-fresh cow.

After some discussion with the herdsman regarding intake and fresh cow transition issues and peak milk, I notice that the average DIM in that pen is actually 20 days. It turns out the transition cow team has been keeping fresh cows in that pen for as much as 10 days longer to keep an extra eye on them during a time of lower calvings. If this will be the plan going forward, there are a few things I will do differently in formulating that diet to help cows a bit higher in DIM and for higher intake levels.

Procedural drift is at the base of several of these potential situations. Things like pen moves, vaccinations, voluntary waiting period (VWP), and days at first breeding can all be set in protocols and believed to be happening as planned. By spending a little time in the herd management software, you might find that the actual implementation leaves something to be desired.

Verify, reverify, and verify a third time.

Train, retrain, and train again.

Feeding accuracy is always a topic where the truth may be hard to find. If a TMR sample does not meet the formulated nutrient specifications, we may then know that we arent feeding what we think we are.

Was it just a bad day the samples were taken or is the loading and mixing protocol at the dairy in need of some work?

We believe that the feeders put the correct amount of the correct ingredient in the mixer. Is this true?

Taking more frequent TMR samples might help for gaining confidence in the ration. Using an aggressive feed and ingredient inventory management and tracking process also will help ensure accurate ingredient loading and mixing. Dont forget to verify mixer scales on a regular basis.

At times when the stars are aligned, 2 plus 2 can seem to equal 5 and the cows are exceeding expectations. In all the fun end enjoyment in that situation, dont forget to look for the magic to keep it going. At other times, 2 plus 2 seems to barely equal 3. In these situations, ask yourself what you think may be happening at the dairy and verify to be sure it is so.

And one more thing, always believe the cows. Data and even humans can convey information that is not true. The computer may spit out false numbers and your intuition and memory can fail you. Building systems and a solid team of people with common goals will solve most of the problems. Calibrating equipment, completing preventive maintenance, and keeping everything clean and tidy just seems to help ensure success. It is attention to the details that will allow the cows to reach their maximum potential.

Read more:

What's the fake news on your dairy? - Hoard's Dairyman

Soldiers have started a military operation to clear the streets of Kazakhstans commercial capital and largest city, threatening to shoot on sight anyone that ventures abroad.

Russian state-owned news agencies have broadcast dramatic video of squadrons of soldiers walking down a wide street that they claim is close to Republic Square in the heart of the old capital and shooting machine guns at unseen assailants.

Russias flagship English-language channel RT reports that dozens are dead, including ten policemen, and that three of those have been beheaded.

The problem is thatbne IntelliNews correspondent in Almaty says that most of the reports are not true, or are at least highly suspect.

Fake news?

Currently it is next to impossible to verify or confirm the many dramatic reports coming out of Almaty. The internet has been shut down. All the independent media outlets and social media apps like the popular Telegram messaging service are not working.

However, Kazakh state media are still releasing information and the Russian state-owned press is also on the ground and broadcasting, including the Kremlins RT.

Some independent information is coming out of the country and it seems clear that there have indeed been shootings and killings of both Kazakh police and civilians. What is not known is the scale of the casualties and fatalities.bne IntelliNews correspondent, reporting by phone, says that there has been violence and fighting but from what he can glean by calling around to people that live at the scenes of the reported violence, the clashes have been on a smaller scale than some of the reports since January 5 havedescribed with estimates of dozens dead.

The Russian media outlet TASS also reported on the soldiers shooting at Republic Square in the heart of Almaty. The news agency releasedfootageof soldiers in an urban setting shooting down a street at unseen opponents the source of the video that was used by RT.

The RT report went on to say that banks have been robbed and stores looted. The reporter also claimed that at least 10 police officers have been killed and three were unfortunately beheaded, a claim that does not seem to have been picked up by other media reporting on the story and is new compared to early reports of eight policemen that died, reported the day before.

bne IntelliNews correspondent in Almaty warns that reports by the official media and Russian state-owned media should be treated with caution, as they have already reported on shootings thatbne IntelliNews correspondent can assess as fake news.

Those reports, I wouldn't believe them, as in the physical locations where the shooting is reportedly happening, I called people who live there and they say it has been peaceful all day. Nothing is happening,bne IntelliNews correspondent said in a phone call from Almaty.

Nevertheless, there have been multiple reports and videos that suggest some of the protesters have got access to guns, and other unconfirmed reports on social media show that there has been shooting in the city.

Official reports of around a dozen deaths amongst the police force also seem creditable, even if the reports of beheadings cannot be confirmed at this time. Video has also surfaced from what appears to be from a morgue of almost two dozen civilian corpses.

Mixed message

Another aspect of the reporting coming out of the old Silk Road way station of Almaty is that the Kazakh and Russian media have been contradicting each other on the severity of the crisis.

The context of Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev's call on January 5 for military help from the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) to quell the protests may be a decisive factor here. On the one hand, calling in Russian military is politically embarrassing for Tokayev, who already seems keen to play the need for outside help down;on the other hand, the Kremlin is motived to hype up the violence in the Kazakh city to justify what it has been selling as a peacekeeping mission to save lives and restore order. Some pundits have already been drawing parallels between the Russian military aid as an intervention or reminiscent of Prague in 1968, when the Soviet Union sent in tanks to put down the "Prague Spring" demonstrations.

The situation has been further confused by the speed of the changes in the last three days. On the first day Tokayev addressed the nationwith a conciliatorytone and concessions. He blamed and sacked the government for the spike in fuel prices that had sparked the first demonstrations. The subsidies were reintroduced and Tokayev announced a package of aid and price caps to try to deal with the core complaints of the protesters.

As it became clear the next day that these concessions were not going to placate the crowds as the demonstration was already morphing into more general anti-government unrest, Tokayevs line quickly hardened. He began to talk about hooligans and then within hours international organised and funded terrorists and financially motivated plotters.

Tokayev addressed his unrest-gripped Central Asian nation on January 5, vowing a "tough" response to mass protests over a New Year energy price hike. "As president, I am obliged to protect the safety and peace of our citizens, to worry about the integrity of Kazakhstan," he said in Russian on Kazakh television, adding that he intends "to act as severely as possible".

That is when he asked the CSTO for help. However, now the Russian soldiers are on the way, and some are already reportedly on the ground, the Kazakh official media is already backing away from its stern stance.

The official Kazakh media is already reporting things are calming down and things will go back to normal in the next few days. The Russian media are reporting that all hell is breaking loose,bne IntelliNews correspondent said.

The Kazakh media are reporting that the CSTO forces will come to protect infrastructure and will mainly be made up of [CSTO member states] Kyrgyz, Armenianand Tajik forces. However, the Russian media are saying the CSTO forces are coming in and are needed to bring peace, our correspondent continued.

From the ground it looks like [the] internet shutdown has been done so people don't know what is going on and stay at home, but when you talk to people who actually live there [amid the locations of the unrest]nothing seems to be happening,bne IntelliNews'correspondent reports. There is a lot of what looks like misinformation. After January 4 the next wave of protests were muted. The government stepped back and allowed the ransacking to go on but only now they say they are back in control, he added.

While RT is reporting on widespread vandalism and looting of banks and stores, our correspondent says the only obvious victim is the large Magnit shopping mall in the centre, which has been attacked, but there is no widespread looting.

Another factor at play is that, asbne IntelliNewshas reported, Tokayev appears to have opportunistically taken advantage to the crisis to remove the last hold on power of the former Kazakh president Nursultan Nazarbayev. Tokayev took over Nazarbayevs job as head of the National Security Council, the successor to the Soviet-era KGB,and has replaced key figures in the administration, including the head of the security services, with people loyal to himself.

Nazarbayevs name has disappeared from reporting in the last two days;[he] fled the country on January 5 and is now believed to be in Switzerland,bne IntelliNews'correspondent says. Officially Tokayev now holds all the levers of power.

Blood on the street

Despite all these complications, the protests in Almaty and elsewhere haveclearly got out-of-control and there most certainly have been casualties and deaths. Belowbne IntelliNewsreports on what has been broadcast and shared, but we emphasise that none of the posts or videos released can be verified. Moreover, we strongly suspect that some or possibly even all of the posts could be fake, as clearly both the Russian and Kazakh authorities have been trying to manipulate the information reaching the public to bring the protests to an end sooner in the case of the Kazakhs by terrorising the population, and to justify sending Russian troops to another country in the case of the Russians.

While information is sketchy, it is clear that there were major clashes between protesters and Kazakh police and in many incidents the protesters outnumbered the police who were not in control of the situation. Many of these reports were posted on social media before the internet was turned off during the afternoon of January 5.

Some 109 people have been hospitalised, according to official news reports, of which almost all were police officers, strongly suggesting that the demonstrators have had the upper hand on the second day of protests.

On January 5 those reports were followed by new reports of deaths amongst the security services. The Kazakh Internal Affairs Ministry says 10 police and national guard troops were killed in clashes with protesters and another 317 injured during unrest in several regions of Kazakhstan, Russian news service RIA reported. These early reports of the 10 dead policemen made no mention of any beheadings.

The social media that was still possible to release on January 5 showed copious video of protesters fighting with police and openly smashing and burning police cars and vans.

In another clip a group of about 20 protesters surrounded an officer in full riot gear and wrestled a shotgun from him and walked away with it. Shotguns are standard issue in protests and used for crowd control but usually fire non-lethal birdshot rather than deadly ammunition. During the Belarusian demonstrations in the summer of 2020 there were several confirmed reports of the use of shotguns firing birdshot against protesters.

But the most disturbingvideo(WARNING: graphic content) to emerge on social media is a clip circulating on Russian Telegram that appears to be shot from inside a morgue, where some 20 body bags are lined up in a small hall that contain what appears to be normal people who are cut and bruised, covered in blood.

Fight for the airport

The one clash thatcertainly occurredand was confirmed by Tokayev himself was the fight for the airport in Almaty that was briefly taken over by protesters on January 5, until local security troops recaptured it later in the day.

Tokayev referred to the seizure the next day, saying an assault to recapture it was led by Kazakh paratroopers. However, separately there were reports that Russian Spetsnaz participated in, or even carried out, the operation.

RT broadcast a recorded phone message from a Russian at the airport waiting to fly out as the airport was taken over. The passenger said that the staff of the airport suddenly left.

There are eight of us sitting here, but all the staff is leaving. They have not told us anything and they have not tried to evacuate us, the man said. Other reports described the same events, in reports that cannot be independently verified.

However, by the end of the day the airport was back in the governments hands, although no details of how that was achieved or if anyone was hurt in the operation were given.

The airport currently remains closed and no flights are going in or out of any of Kazakhstans three main international airports.

Nazarbayev reportedly leftAlmaty Airport shortly before it fell into the protesters hands on January 5 on a private jet, one of the last flights out of the country.

Guns

It also appears highly like that some of the protesters have armed themselves. More social mediafootageshowed men handing out rifles and machine guns in the last two days, getting ready to fight.

In another incident, there were unconfirmed reports that protesters had stormed a National Security Committee armoury in Almaty and emptied it of arms and ammo. Thefootageshowed men emptying lockers and gun racks of arms, while at least one man had an RPG (rocket-propelled grenade).

Some of the guns seem to be already in use. While there is little reliable reporting, in avideoposted on Twitter by BNO News during the evening of January 5, machine gun fire and loud explosions can clearly be heard on the street as screaming women flee.A secondvideoposted earlier in the day shows more heavy machine gun fire in what appears to be the centre of Almaty.

Originally posted here:

Fake news? Conflicting reports of shooting in Almaty as Russian and Kazakh governments appear to manipulate reporting for own agendas - bne...

Houston, TX At the time of this writing, the nation moves forward through what many consider the dead week for the year, a label for those 7 days between Christmas and New Years when many workers and students find themselves on break/holiday. It is also a time for extremes in emotions, from the joys of what the holiday season bring, as well as some of the sorrows. This can apply to all walks of life, from one-on-one family interactions to the vaunted game of American pro football. Especially this time of year, when one win or one defeat can alter that most fragile of psychological bases, an NFL team psyche.

Well, I dont know about all of that [Easterby], but [EASTERBY], it is good to be a Texan right now!!! This was the almost universal response when our intrepid Totally Not Fake News reporters roamed the facilities of the Texans. There hadnt been this level of buoyancy for this squad since the end of the second game of the preseason.

Two in row, baby!!!! Do we even know how to lose anymore??? exalted Texans head coach David Culley, who once again had to shake loose nacho chip crumbs from his hair after the umpteenth celebratory Tostitos shower upon reviewing the game film from Sunday. Life is good right nowreal good.

YYYYEEEEAAAAHHHHHHH BBBBBBAAAAAABBBBBBBYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!! shouted starting quarterback Davis Mills, who in his exuberance, knocked over the new Star Wars Bad Batch Lego set he received for Christmas and was currently working on. I threw so.sooo.soo, oh, just so gosh darned swell, and we kicked some major hinny!!!! Mills immediately then covered his mouth with both hands and frantically scanned the room for anyone else. Sorry about that Mr. Reporter, sir. I really, really try not to say bad words, but

[Editors Note: We do use reporters of all known genders, but for this assignment, we went with a dudedont report us, please. Our legal department cant take any more hits.]

After our reporter assured Mills that it was ok, the starting quarterback continued. I just threw so well yesterday. But the crazy thing was, we actually were running the football. I hadnt seen that all year. All of those plays where I would hand it to the running back, and he was run real hard, and real fastand just get stopped right about where the center snapped the ball to me. But on Sunday, I would hand the ball off to the running back guy, and he would actually run past where all the big meanies hang out. They didnt even have time to say anything bad about my mommy this time, cause they were chasing the running back guy so often.

When asked about the emergence of the Texans best running game of the season, long time long-snapper Jon Weeks just yawned. Yeah, yeah, we actually moved the ball on the ground. We used to do that all the time in the olden days, back in 2011 and other timelines like that. It was good to see that kid Burkhead run like he did back when he was a young pup at Nebraska. That was cool.

In addition to watching Davis Mills evolve as a QB, this game also presented the opportunity for other players to take their turn in the spotlight.

Finally, people will acknowledge me for my body of work and not for just my actual body exhaled Jonathan Owens, who emerged from the COVID-depleted pack of a roster to log a 4 tackle/1 INT/1 Fumble Recovery game. I mean, yeah, I am blessed to be dating a great woman and all, but...hey, reporter dude...eyes up here!!!

[Editors Note: In order to avoid another legal situation, we liquidated this reporter on the spot. We sent one of new female reporters to finish this session...but then we had to liquidate her when she too seemed distracted by the body that is Owens...eventually, we just found some blind/deaf non-binary individual to try to finish the interview, but Owens had long since left the building].

Still, even with the Texans riding high after a very unexpected two-game winning streak and with all of the good vibes, there is concern for the team. Yeah, we are kicking [Easterby], but you are only as good as your last game and last play. Now we see San Francisco may be without its starting QB and all of that. My biggest struggle this week, well, after washing the Tostitos out of my hair, is trying to keep the guys focused and grounded. Too much success is perhaps as dangerous as too much failure. We gotta keep everyone grounded opined Coach Culley.

Yeah, know what you mean sighed Offensive Coordinator Tim Kelly. If Davis keeps going on one more time about how goodest he threw that football and all, I will have to spike his milk with pure liquid morphine.

Even the highest levels of Texans leadership is concerned about being too arrogant where this game is concerned. In an effort to keep the team in line, the most powerful person in the Texans organization took quite a drastic step, as seen below:

Pending what happens, whether the Texans find themselves borrowing the ancient Roman practice of having a servant mutter into their ears remember thou art mortal, or if Kelly succeeds in getting Mills to calm down for 5 minutes, or if we can manage to avoid any more legal situations, we at Totally Not Fake News will strive to bring to you, our readers, the best news that we can. Remember our mantra:

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Totally Not Fake News: The Greatest Challenge - Battle Red Blog

The NHS trust said any problematic pigeons would be handled 'humanely'

NHS staff in Portsmouth have been on the receiving end of shocking abuse over the telephone and email after mistaken reports about culling pigeons were published online.

The rogue social media claims said the South Central Ambulance Service were planning to kill pigeons at a location in Portsmouth, the service have wholly rejected the claims as categorically untrue.

The NHS trust said any problematic pigeons would be handled humanely.

Online social media posts by animal rights groups had made claims of a wildlife slaughter at the Portsmouth Patient Transport Service base, including contact details for the trust which appears could have led to the abuse.

Stock Pigeon image Gareth Milner

The NHS trust had stated the number of pigeons in the specific location had increased, but they were working with experts to reduce the amount of nesting taking place.

"The associated health and safety risks posed to our staff are significant, along with the difficulties of ensuring that it does not adversely affect the cleanliness and condition of our patient transport vehicles," SCAS said.

"The option we are considering involves humanely trapping (in cages with space, food and water) and releasing the birds, with netting then installed as a preventative measure to stop them returning."

It said the social media posts, some of which included images of dead pigeons, had resulted in "significant abuse" of staff.

"This is unacceptable and such activity online is irresponsible given the increase in unnecessary communication it has caused at a time of significant pressure across the trust.

Original post:

Fake news over Pigeon cull leads to abuse of NHS staff - GB News

Williams is a political science major originally from Carmel Valley. Ziment is a public policy analysis major, originally from 4S Ranch. Both are students at Pomona College in Claremont.

A new conspiracy theory is gaining traction: Omicron is a variant invented by the Democrats in order to help them in the midterm elections. Pete Hegseth, a Fox News commentator, suggested that you could count on a variant about every October, every two years. Its natural to wonder who would believe ridiculous conspiracy theories like these. Maybe its not necessarily a sudden widespread belief in the accuracy of conspiracies, but rather a new digital world that is allowing them to spread and prosper.

This digital world is led by social media, which is the main perpetrator in causing an increasing support for conspiracy theories by driving inaccurate sharing and causing the processing of information to remain at the surface level.

We provide this platform for community commentary free of charge. Thank you to all the Union-Tribune subscribers whose support makes our journalism possible. If you are not a subscriber, please consider becoming one today.

Many assume that political ideology drives belief in fake news and conspiracy theories, and while its true that partisanship matters, it isnt as important as many make it out to be. Its also not that people are unable to distinguish accurate news from false news. While people are more likely to believe partisan political views with which they agree, studies show that when people are asked to rate true headlines, their ratings are accurate. They may even be more able to assess the accuracy of views of those with politics similar to theirs.

So what actually drives this phenomenon?

It comes down to heuristics (mental shortcuts) and the degree of analytical thinking. The idea that like goes with like leads people to believe conspiracy theories because your brain instinctually believes that big causes must have big effects.

The illusory truth effect is another heuristic that describes how prior exposure to a fake news headline increases belief later on. The amount of time of exposure to a media can be an extremely influential factor in belief. Psychology researchers Gordon Pennycook and David G. Rand highlight that peoples likelihood to believe in fake news content decreases when they are more reflective and are able to differentiate between truth and falsities. Overconfidence obstructs reflective thinking, leading to more belief in conspiracy theories.

In the tug of war between the intuitive and the rational systems, social media aids in jump-starting processing at the intuitive level. By bypassing deeper processing, support for conspiracy theories is increasing because they are not being fully processed for their accuracy. It is not necessarily that people are not caring about ensuring the accuracy of what they are reading and sharing. Instead, social media is aiding in focusing their attention on other factors that distract from the necessary deeper processing to discern what is truth and what is not.

A recent study found that distractors on social media and their desire to attract followers are all contributing to an increased likelihood of sharing misinformation. For conspiracy theories, increased sharing of media regardless of its veracity means a more prolific message and a wider base for these false stories to grow with. And with more of a following, these stories gain validity, and the self-perpetuating cycle driven by social media feeds the fire of the spread of misinformation.

What is at the crux of this new development is the finding that the form of digital media influences how information is processed. Images or text blurbs, commonly found on platforms like Twitter, are processed quickly and automatically. Thus, the conspiracy theories being presented in this format and on these platforms are being processed more quickly in a less controlled and accuracy-based manner.

These recent findings surrounding the influence of the type of media on processing coupled with the rise to fame in concise and approachable media platforms like Twitter and TikTok are what are breeding an environment in which conspiracy theories are finding greater traction and are thriving now more than ever.

Given all of this, its no surprise that research by Xizhu Xiao at Chinas Qingdao University and Porismita Borah and Yan Su at Washington State University shows that social media news use was associated with higher conspiracy beliefs, and trust in social media news was found to be a significant moderator of the relationship between social media news use and conspiracy beliefs.

So whats the solution? Studies show that credibility indicators, which fact-check sources and present a rating, reduce false sharing. But this isnt something that everyday people have control over. What can individuals like you do to combat this effect? Research shows that being an active, thoughtful and open-minded social media user is associated with good online behavior. Before you share something, spend a few seconds simply thinking, Is this something that you think is true?

Link:

Opinion: People can spot fake news. So why do conspiracy theories thrive on social media? - The San Diego Union-Tribune

Woke, sharp and alert on the eve of 2022? Well, think again; look behind the landmines of misinformation that you tip-toed over in the year gone by.

It's quite likely that in 2021, you too might have tripped over a fake, at least once, even if inadvertently.

Did you hear about a bride paragliding into the wrong wedding venue who ended up marrying a different person? Or a beau gifting his lover a piece of jewellery made from his own teeth?

From a creepy creature landing at Bihar's Darbhanga to spotting a wailing mermaid at the Mangalore beach, 2021 has had its share of strange and bizarre misinformation that managed to bluff people.

ALSO READ | Dial M for Muslim, Jamtara boys and other hot trends in fact checking during 2021

Like the many variants of Covid-19, misinformation also came in different shapes and colours.

Here are some Alpha, Delta and Omicrons of fake news we came face to face in 2021. Equally contagious. While some left you amused or perplexed, others were downright disgusting.

Who were the most fact-checked personalities of 2021 in India?

We tried to find the answer by using "Google Fact Check explorer" -- a repository of fact check articles by various fact-checking organisations, a kind of ready reckoner.

This helped us identify the top five personalities whose posts triggered the maximum number of fac?t check articles. These were the people who came under the scanners of fact-checkers multiple times.

BJP leaders Sambit Patra, Amit Malviya and Priti Gandhi, Pakistan-born Canadian columnist Tarek Fatah, and editor-in-chief of Sudarshan News, Suresh Chavhanke topped the list.

Netizens almost believed a weird story on social media about a "creepy creature" falling from the sky in Bihar's Darbhanga during cyclone Yaas. The story got thousands of shares before it was debunked. Huh, it turned out to be a silicon toy created by an Italian artist.

On a wing and a prayer, literally? This video of a man lying on the turbine engine of an aircraft made people skip a heartbeat. More so, because this came at a time when visuals of people desperately trying to flee Afghanistan were all over the internet.

It was an amazing digital creation by a Vietnamese graphic designer.

The wailing Mermaid on the seashore of Mangalore was in fact an awareness video on sea conservation, shot in Sri Lanka.

Marriages are made in heaven. But a paragliding trip for a destination wedding could land a bride with the wrong husband ?

Sounds funny. But several mainstream media outlets tripped over this bizarre story of a bride in Gwalior paragliding into a wrong wedding venue and marrying a different person. This was a fictitious story published on a satire website.

Did Covid concerns force Olympic organisers to make "anti-sex beds" for athletes?

No, these beds were designed before the pandemic and could bear more than 400 pounds weight -- enough for most, if not, couples. Even if the news is fake, nothing sells like sex. So, many chose to jump over to this ludicrous bed.

A Muslim BTS fan accidentally plays the song "Dynamite" instead of the azaan on loudspeakers at 4 am and gets arrested in Uttar Pradesh's Jaunpur. While this could make for a crazy fan story, this too was fictitious.

We take great pride in the fact that Sanskrit is a scientific and mathematically compatible language.

But someone decided to take us for a ride in a satire piece claiming that an IIT gold medallist has created an Indian messaging app using Sanskrit coding.

Stoking our fear for the deadly virus, a satire article claimed that CNN has praised Taliban fighters for using masks.

Another said the US is detaining non-vaccinated people in camps.

Many gulped them all, with our eyes wide shut.

Stories that were so disgusting that you felt like puking.

The story of a street food vendor in Guwahati who mixed urine in food was already unpalatable. A further twist to give it a communal spin made it even more sickening.

If you've read the famous story "The gift of the Magi", you know that true love knows no boundaries. But which girl in the world would want jewellery made out of her lover's teeth as a gift?

Convincing anti-vaxxers to get a shot in the arm is challenging enough. But these guys floated the idea of Covid vaccine shots in the penis and still found some takers.

If you've any doubt that the infodemic of misinformation could be as contagious as the Covid-19, just look at the rubbish some people choose to believe.

The video of Covid vaccines turning people into magnets might have started as a prank. But soon it was spreading all over the internet and in the WhatsApp groups.

The story of vaccines turning people into zombies and cannibals looks like a shot straight out of a zombie film. But the fact-checkers discovered to their horror that there is no dearth of conspiracy theories and zombie fans.

We don't mind when onions make us teary eyed. But won't you panic if someone tells you that that dreaded black fungus, mucormycosis, is sitting right under the onion peels?

By now, you already know that there were no creeps falling from the sky in Darbhanga, that you've not turned into a magnet after taking the shot of vaccine and that the black fungus in the onions are rather harmless.

But the zombies of misinformation are unlikely to go away. Like the Omicron variant, they might just change their tentacles in the new year.

Read more:

From wailing mermaids to vaccinated zombies: Fake news that tickled your fancy in 2021 - India Today

At the end of 2020, it seemed hard to imagine a worse year for misinformation on social media, given the intensity of the presidential election and the trauma of the COVID-19 pandemic. But 2021 proved up to the task, starting with the Jan. 6 insurrection and continuing with copious amounts of falsehoods and distortions about COVID-19 vaccines.

To get a sense of what 2022 could hold, we asked three researchers about the evolution of misinformation on social media.

Anjana Susarla, Professor of Information Systems, Michigan State University

While misinformation has always existed in media think of the Great Moon Hoax of 1835 that claimed life was discovered on the moon the advent of social media has significantly increased the scope, spread and reach of misinformation. Social media platforms have morphed into public information utilities that control how most people view the world, which makes misinformation they facilitate a fundamental problem for society.

There are two primary challenges in addressing misinformation. The first is the dearth of regulatory mechanisms that address it. Mandating transparency and giving users greater access to and control over their data might go a long way in addressing the challenges of misinformation. But theres also a need for independent audits, including tools that assess social media algorithms. These can establish how the social media platforms choices in curating news feeds and presenting content affect how people see information.

The second challenge is that racial and gender biases in algorithms used by social media platforms exacerbate the misinformation problem. While social media companies have introduced mechanisms to highlight authoritative sources of information, solutions such as labeling posts as misinformation dont solve racial and gender biases in accessing information. Highlighting relevant sources of, for example, health information may only help users with greater health literacy and not people with low health literacy, who tend to be disproportionately minorities.

Another problem is the need to look systematically at where users are finding misinformation. TikTok, for example, has largely escaped government scrutiny. Whats more, misinformation targeting minorities, particularly Spanish-language content, may be far worse than misinformation targeting majority communities.

I believe the lack of independent audits, lack of transparency in fact checking and the racial and gender biases underlying algorithms used by social media platforms suggest that the need for regulatory action in 2022 is urgent and immediate.

Dam Hee Kim, Assistant Professor of Communication, University of Arizona

Fake news is hardly a new phenomenon, yet its costs have reached another level in recent years. Misinformation concerning COVID-19 has cost countless lives all over the world. False and misleading information about elections can shake the foundation of democracy, for instance, by making citizens lose confidence in the political system. Research I conducted with S Mo Jones-Jang and Kate Kenski on misinformation during elections, some published and some in progress, has turned up three key findings.

The first is that the use of social media, originally designed to connect people, can facilitate social disconnection. Social media has become rife with misinformation. This leads citizens who consume news on social media to become cynical not only toward established institutions such as politicians and the media, but also toward fellow voters.

Second, politicians, the media and voters have become scapegoats for the harms of fake news. Few of them actually produce misinformation. Most misinformation is produced by foreign entities and political fringe groups who create fake news for financial or ideological purposes. Yet citizens who consume misinformation on social media tend to blame politicians, the media and other voters.

The third finding is that people who care about being properly informed are not immune to misinformation. People who prefer to process, structure and understand information in a coherent and meaningful way become more politically cynical after being exposed to perceived fake news than people who are less politically sophisticated. These critical thinkers become frustrated by having to process so much false and misleading information. This is troubling because democracy depends on the participation of engaged and thoughtful citizens.

Looking ahead to 2022, its important to address this cynicism. There has been much talk about media literacy interventions, primarily to help the less politically sophisticated. In addition, its important to find ways to explain the status of fake news on social media, specifically who produces fake news, why some entities and groups produce it, and which Americans fall for it. This could help keep people from growing more politically cynical.

Rather than blaming each other for the harms of fake news produced by foreign entities and fringe groups, people need to find a way to restore confidence in each other. Blunting the effects of misinformation will help with the larger goal of overcoming societal divisions.

Ethan Zuckerman, Associate Professor of Public Policy, Communication, and Information, UMass Amherst

I expect the idea of misinformation will shift into an idea of propaganda in 2022, as suggested by sociologist and media scholar Francesca Tripodi in her forthcoming book, The Propagandists Playbook. Most misinformation is not the result of innocent misunderstanding. Its the product of specific campaigns to advance a political or ideological agenda.

Once you understand that Facebook and other platforms are the battlegrounds on which contemporary political campaigns are fought, you can let go of the idea that all you need are facts to correct peoples misapprehensions. Whats going on is a more complex mix of persuasion, tribal affiliation and signaling, which plays out in venues from social media to search results.

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As the 2022 elections heat up, I expect platforms like Facebook will reach a breaking point on misinformation because certain lies have become political speech central to party affiliation. How do social media platforms manage when false speech is also political speech?

Anjana Susarla, Professor of Information Systems, Michigan State University; Dam Hee Kim, Assistant Professor of Communication, University of Arizona, and Ethan Zuckerman, Associate Professor of Public Policy, Communication, and Information, UMass Amherst

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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2021 was the year of fake news and misinformation on social media. Its going to get worse - ThePrint