In the past: reliance on major news channels
In the past, before the introduction of computers, the population relied on major news channels for updated news. The television networks relayed valid information at the top of the hour, with the presenters legitimizing the information through live coverage. The trend changed with the introduction of computers and internet connectivity. Individual bloggers created channels where people can read and view events occurring all over the world. However, most of the blogs lack authenticity and are the major suppliers of fake news. Fake news refers to phony stories spread through the media with the primary purpose of swaying the perception of the community concerning issues such as political affiliation. The propaganda plays a crucial role in casting doubts on legitimate information for the benefit of an individual or a group.
The meaning of fake news
Fake news is a term formed from the combination of two nouns. In separation, the words are fake and news. A keen analysis of the two words reveals their respective meaning, which contributes to their collective description when joined together. Fake is the synonym of imitation or counterfeit. Therefore, the term indicates that the fake products try to imitate the real ones but fail in authenticity. For example, counterfeit goods such as sugar resemble the real product from the superficial view. However, the products are far from the original one. On the other hand, news refers to a broadcast of recent information about the events in a country or regions to the population (Simpson, and Weiner). Combining the two terms, fake news becomes the broadcast of false information by the media channels on recent developments with the purpose of imitating the real story despite the lack of authenticity.
Role of news channels vs. fake news
The primary role of news channels is keeping the population informed on current events. For example, the media notifies the public on global events such as the political instability in Syria. The source of uncertainty is due to the fight between the extremists and the government. Such information is accurate because the reporters invest a lot of time traveling to such countries and getting the information. Therefore, they fulfill their primary role of passing the message. The primary intention of fake news is to sway public opinion on crucial matters within society. The bloggers create content that resembles the real situation but alter the information to meet their goals. For example, they inflate the government expenditure on issues that seem unnecessary to portray the government as inconsiderate in the eyes of the people.
Lack of validation in fake news
Apart from the bogus intention of the fake news, the bloggers of the information do not have any means of validating the data. Most of the broadcast originates from their thoughts or that of their masters. Unlike the official media channels that invest a great deal of time and energy in collecting the news, fake journalists spend their time digging up false information from the media. Most of them pass the data through the internet in sites that do not bear their identity. Therefore, it becomes impossible to find them and compel them to ascertain the validity of the data presented (Hand 51). All the processes involved in creating fake news are bogus; the data collection, the people involved in collecting the information, the sites used in relaying the data as well as owners of the media. Therefore, the term fake communicates the actual authenticity of the news.
Captivating headlines and lack of relevancy
Fake stories have very captivating headlines. The headlines aim at capturing the attention of the potential audience, which drives them into clicking the link to read. However, the information inside the loop might not be in line with the heading. In some of the websites, the link is a marketing strategy for companies advertising their products. Therefore, the address might lead the viewer to a site with a limited amount of information regarding the topic. The rest of the page will be holding information about the company or the goods advertised. For the bloggers, the number of viewers translates to a higher income from the advertised company. As long as the viewer clicks on the link, the content creators for the fake news do not care whether the information is relevant or not. Their primary interest is the viewership.
Identifying fake news
Identification of fake news is challenging at times. The close resemblance and deviated opinion might confuse a more significant part of the population. However, the primary method is looking for the news communicated in other channels. For example, in the recent past, fake news channels announced the death of celebrities such as Morgan Freeman, Jackie Chan and many others. However, the news was available on the channels alone. When something of such significance occurs, such as the recent death of Kofi Anan in August, all the major channels communicated the news. Therefore, the fake news appears only in the bogus sites. Renowned sites such as the BBC do not take part in the distribution of such information due to their reliability in communication. The famous sites use their dominance and security in the field to discredit fake news for the in-depth understanding of the viewers.
Emotional manipulation and lack of factual background
Instead of focusing on reality, fake news channels target the emotional side of the audience by predicting things that the population is desperate to hear (Hughes 194). For example, the current generation is suffering from lifestyle conditions such as obesity and high blood pressure. The fake news outlets, knowing the level of desperation in the society, will create a blog using a headline associated with the cure of such conditions. However, logging into the site will reveal that the author of the information does not have the medical background to address the issue nor the correct source of information for the data. However, the site will attract many people due to the desperation in society. Other headlines might preempt the cure of cancer, but the information within might be an assumption without any scientific evidence.
Excitement over factual accuracy
Fake news is exciting to read. As stated earlier, the primary function of the outlets is to attract as many people as possible and manipulate them into increasing the number of viewership. However, facts can be very dull sometimes for the typical person. Therefore, the management of fake news invests in exciting topics that will keep the audience glued to the site. In the platform, the viewer meets other topics with compelling content that explains the current events in the country. Most of the fake news channels purport to be conveying secret information, which the government does not want the people to know. The assumption tries to justify the absence of the same story on the major news outlets. Fake news is imaginary, non-factual, and tailored to attract the attention of the reader but lacks any important or informative content.
Citing non-existent surveys
When presenting fake stories, the journalists cite a non-existent survey, which they indicate as the source of the data. When trying to sway public opinion on a matter, it is imperative for the sites to convince the public that the information presented bears the popular belief. Fake news is a compilation of forged data purported to originate from an extensive study or research from the audience. Most of the people will believe the information and change their perception. However, following up on the polls will expose the conniving attribute of the authors in forging data to achieve their target through emotional manipulation of the audience (Spicer 7). More so, the authors specialize in diverse topics such as politics, economy, and health matters among others. The diversity allows them to capture many people by increasing the probability of the issues that interest the public.
The intentional spreading of false information
Fake news is a combination of interesting stories without any factual background aimed at capturing the attention of the readers to sway their position on the topic of discussion. The bogus stories originate from the minds of the owners of the media who forge data to convince the public on the authenticity of the stories. Most of the information presented through the fake channels is not valid from the mainstream media. Unlike in the renowned channels where the sources of the data are evident, false stories do not have an actual origin, and the owners of the blogs use false names in covering their identity to avoid taking responsibility for the information. Therefore, fake news is the intentional spreading of false information to the society by authors whose primary target is swaying the public perception and increasing the viewership of their sites.
Works Cited
Hand, Carol. Everything You Need to Know about Fake News and Propaganda. New York, NY: Rosen Publishing Group, 2017. Print.
Hughes, Sven. Verbalisation : the power of words to drive change. S.l: LULU COM, 2017. Print.
Simpson, J. A., and E. S. C. Weiner. The Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford Oxford New York: Clarendon Press Oxford University Press, 2008. Print.
Spicer, Robert N. Free Speech and False Speech : Political Deception and Its Legal Limits (Or Lack Thereof. Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan, 2018. Print.
