Fake News (Imposter Content)

  FAKE NEWS ( IMPOSTER CONTENT ) While satire and parody play on humorous attacks, this first level of “fake news” does not require immediate attention due to its widely acknowledged entertainment value. However, this next level of fake news, fabrication, requires a different response due to its lack of facticity and intent to deceive. This type of information has no factual basis; however, the stories are presented or “published in the style of news articles to create legitimacy,” and often are believed to be a trustworthy source because partisan organizations often present information with some neutrality (Tandoc, Lim & Ling, 2018, p. 143). According to the scholars, Tandoc, Lim and Ling (2018) research acknowledges that this type of information is often spread for the purpose of financial gain or now, more frequently, by artificial intelligence online sources. On May 1, 2019, newspapers, appearing identical to The Washington Post, were distributed on the streets in Washingto...