Teens Susceptible to Fake Digital News: Stanford Study

BENGALURU: As the debate rages on the impact of fake news on social media in the wake of Donald Trump’s victory to become the 45^th President of the US, a new Stanford study has revealed that teens are the most vulnerable section to be affected by false digital stories. The survey which was conducted by Stanford Graduate School of Education professor Sam Wineburg in 12 different states came to the conclusion that a majority of the students could not distinguish between an ad sponsored content and a real substantiated news story, as reported by CBS SF. 

The study also found out that nearly 40 pct of students didn’t even question the photo of deformed daisies that was published with a headline about the region near the Fukushima nuclear plant. But the fact remains that the photo had no credit to prove that it was actually from Fukushima.

“It’s a general assumption that because young people are fluent in social media they are equally perceptive about what they find there,” Wineburg said in a press release. “Our work shows the opposite to be true.”

The study began much earlier in 2015, before the fake news on social media controversy hit the headlines, following the election of Donald Trump. The main aim of the study was to focus on the news literacy and the ability of the students to make sense of the news on Facebook, Twitter, various other forums, blogs and other digital messages that play a huge role in shaping the public opinion.  

In an exercise the students were asked to evaluate two Facebook posts related to Trump’s candidacy for the President. According to the release, one of the news was from the verified account of Fox news, whereas the other was from an account that looked like Fox news. And to the surprise of many, only a quarter of the students recognized the original account, whereas 30 pct of the students were convinced that the other account was the authentic one, as it contained some graphic elements. Another astonishing aspect revealed by the study found out that results were more challenging and charged with topics related to politics.

According to Wineburg, the next step should be to train the educators in addressing the needs of their students and help them in gathering information from various digital platforms. In light of the recent developments, the work has acquired greater significance now than ever.

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