Techniques To Detect Fake News

The news fakes , also known as hoaxes are false reports that appear (or not) true. Although their use may be accidental, they are often used deliberately to persuade by misinforming. Therefore, detecting fake news has become a priority. Although this type of news has existed forever, today social networks have promoted its distribution. With new technologies, distributing false news and reaching thousands of people is in the hands of anyone with enough computer knowledge.

Thus, learning to distinguish a true story from a false one is essential. However, things are not as simple as truth or lie, black and white. There are several nuances and many of these stories tell the truth even if only in part. Now, detecting fake news can be done through simple gestures. Being attentive to various features of the news will give us, to a large extent, the answer.

How to detect fake news

To begin to detect fake news,  we can divide the news into three sections: the source, the content structure and the contrast of the information. Let’s see what are the details that we must take into account in each of these three sections. All of them correspond to different strategies to verify the information.

The fountain

Identifying the source has to do with knowing where the news came from and who wrote it. Regardless of whether the news is found on the internet, on television, in a newspaper or reaches us through social networks, the news has an author. This author is going to be the source, and the veracity that we attribute to him will determine, to a large extent, the authenticity of that source.

If the person who writes the news is an expert on the subject or is a recognized journalist, we can have indications that the news is true. If, on the other hand, no author appears or we think that the author may have other reasons than to inform, the news is more likely to be false. The same happens with the medium that publishes it, a national newspaper with a long history is not the same as a newspaper that no one has heard of.

The content structure

The next step to detect fake news  after having verified the credentials of the news source would be to look at the content. Specifically, in the structure of the content. The real news is well written. The sentences have a logical connection and what they tell us is credible. They are based on real events and often distinguish between facts and assessments. Something may have happened, but whether it is good or bad is an assessment. In addition, it is important to make sure that the news is current, since various stories from past years frequently reappear with the intention of persuading.

Another characteristic that distinguishes true news is that it presents different points of view. That opinions for and against are expressed is an indication of veracity. As if any political position supports it. Although it is necessary to differentiate that something is seen from a political position to that the news supports a political position being a fake news.

The contrast of information

Finally, we have to contrast the information. It is about  verifying if it is true by comparing it with other information.  Now, how do we contrast the information?

To begin with, we can check if the information appears in other media or news. We may not find it anywhere else, in which case we must doubt its veracity. It may only appear in media with a similar ideology or it may appear in all media. Normally, if it is something important it should be in all the media, if it is not, you will surely have detected a fake news .

It may also appear in other media but these give the opposite information. In that case we should compare it with other news to see which version of the two they support. As you may have seen, detecting fake news is not easy. There is no clear indicator that tells us whether a news item is true or false. Therefore, we have to be critical and value the different aspects that have been proposed. So, although we are not going to be 100% sure, at least we will know that it seems more like a fake news than a real one. The only secret is to have a critical mind and not be convinced by the first thing we read.