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That Can’t Be True . . . Can It?

Some wild ideas get passed around the internet. Why do some people trust them? And how do you tell fact from fiction?

May 2021

by Tod Olson

disinformation

false information that is given to people to make them believe something

Sharing disinformation might seem harmless, but it can cause people to believe bad things about others.

photo credit: BAZA Production/Shutterstock

source

someone or something (like a book or newspaper) that gives information

If you want advice on growing tomatoes, a farmer would be a good source.

photo credit: Snapic_PhotoProduction/Shutterstock

a laptop screen showing a big green check mark

confirms

shows that something is true

This website confirms that your work is submitted, so you know your teacher got it.

photo credit: Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock

alleged

said to have done something wrong but not yet proven guilty

I can’t prove my dog ate the cookies . . . but the alleged cookie thief has crumbs in his bed!

photo credit: Twinkle Studio/Shutterstock

outright

complete and total

My giggle turned into outright laughter when I heard my friend start laughing too.

photo credit: Photoroyalty/Shutterwtock

AuntSpray/Shutterstock.com

Could Earth be . . . flat?

In 2016, the rapper B.o.B. decided someone’s been fooling us.

For more than 2,000 years, science has been saying Earth is shaped like a ball. But B.o.B. had done some research online. It made him believe that Earth is flat. The North Pole sits in the middle. On the edges, a giant wall of ice keeps the oceans from leaking off the side of the planet.

That may sound crazy to you. But millions of people around the world think B.o.B. is right. They’re called “flat-Earthers.” They believe all those pictures of Earth taken from space are fakes.

How do they know? If you ask them, chances are they’ll say they saw it on YouTube.

Spreading Lies

The internet has made a lot of information available to us. More than 700,000 hours of video are added to YouTube every day. Millions of posts are shared on Instagram and Facebook. Facts spread fast. But so does disinformation—and experts say it’s a growing problem.

Why do people spread lies online? Many of them do it to make money. Companies pay to place ads on websites. The companies want to place their ads on websites that get a lot of visitors.

One way to get more visitors is to post about crazy ideas: Did aliens land in the desert? Is Bigfoot living in Oregon? These questions make people curious—so they get pulled in.

That may not sound like a big deal. After all, believing in aliens or Bigfoot seems pretty harmless. But some lies can cause real damage.

In January 2020, a doctor in Europe told reporters that 5G cell phone towers might be spreading the coronavirus. They weren’t—but the idea quickly spread online. Soon people were setting fire to 5G towers because they believed it was true.

How We Get Fooled

You might think it’s easy to spot a lie on the internet. But experts say there are good reasons why we get fooled.

First of all, we don’t usually get information from its original source. We get it on social media from friends or famous people. We trust them. So we believe what they say—especially if it confirms something we already think is true.

Let’s say you read on Instagram that someone you don’t like has been breaking into lockers and stealing stuff. The post came from your best friend. And it fits your view of the alleged thief. You might not stop to ask the important question: Is it true?

And then you might share your friend’s post. Why? It feels like you’ve been let in on a secret people should know.

“If you think you’re the only person who has this information, it’s exciting,” says Aimee Rinehart. She’s an expert who helps fight disinformation. “It’s always fun to be first.”

Fact Versus Fiction

So what can we do to stop the spread of disinformation? Social media companies are starting to crack down on outright lies. Twitter and Facebook have banned some users. They’ve also put labels on posts that may be untrue.

But in the end, there’s only one person who decides what’s true and what’s not: you. It may take a little extra work. But at least when you’re done, you won’t end up fooled.

POP QUIZ Answer: B. No! It’s actually a photo from Hurricane Frances in 2004, with a dolphin added.

4 Ways to Stop the Spread

Here’s what you can do to fight disinformation on the internet.

Souvik Bhattacharjee/The Noun Project

1- Break the shock-and-share cycle. Studies show that lies spread six times faster than the truth on the internet. That’s because people like to share posts that make them angry or shocked. But here’s the thing: The stuff that shocks you is most likely to be false. So before you share, take a deep breath and wait 30 seconds. Ask yourself: Do I know this is real?

Adrien Coquet, FR /The Noun Project

2- Read beyond the headline. This seems like basic advice, right? But more often than not, people share links without even clicking on them! Don’t be that person. Click the link. Take time to read and understand the story before you pass it on.

Branken, ID/The Noun Project

3- Find the source. Where did the story first come from? Many news websites don’t do their own reporting. They recycle stories from other sources. And sometimes they change things along the way. So look for words like, “The New York Times reports.” Then google the original story.

a person with a question mark in a thought bubble

farias, CL/The Noun Project

4- Who else thinks it’s true? Google the facts and see what other sources think. Do most of them agree? If not, which ones should you trust? Start by asking yourself who would know best. (For example, if you’re looking for the truth about Covid-19, you might want to listen to scientists—not social media stars!)