GREEN BAY, Wis. (NBC 26) -- When it comes to news media these days many of us are suffering from information overload. So, how you know which stories are fact and which are fiction?
Today kicks off the second annual National News Literacy Week. It is our goal to help make you a more informed, well-educated news viewer. And, share with you ways to help separate news from noise.
When it comes to online news you can’t believe everything you read especially when accurate information can be critical to your health.
“It's so easy right now in social media to stick a health and wellness to a journal and say that that's science and it's not,” says Prevea Health CEO, Dr. Ashok Rai.
Dr. Rais says social media can be a super-spreader of misinformation about COVID-19.
“I think because of what COVID-19 did to us in having to stay at home and physically distance anybody is looking for any sign of hope and unfortunately that can take a wrong turn and bad information suddenly becomes hope,” says Dr. Rai.
News literacy is the ability to use critical thinking skills to judge news reports. According to our partners at The News Literacy Project, 36% of frequent social media users held at least once false belief about COVID-19.
“Both the beauty and the awful thing about social media is that anyone can say anything and share it with their network and beyond,” says Jena Richter Landers, a social media specialist with UWGB.
She says when false information is shared online it’s not only doing a disservice, it’s dangerous.
“That's how social media works too. The things that perform the best are the things that evoke emotion from people and get people to click and to engage.”
To help build news literacy skills followthese four quick stepsto help stop the spread of misinformation;
- Pause. Don’t let your emotions take over.
- Glance through comments. Has anyone replied with a fact check?
- Do a quick search. In the search bar, turn the claim you’re checking into a question and look for credible sources in the results.
- As for the source. Reply to the person who shared the post asking for the original source or other evidence supporting the claim.
Taking a moment to verify content is what we need in today’s information landscape to help us become smarter news consumers and learn how to better discern fact from fiction.
“We should be really careful about what we share because you could be costing someone a life through misinformation,” Dr. Ashok Rai.
Watch NBC 26's stories on National News Literacy Week all week long during the week of January 25th.
To learn how you can get involved with National News Literacy Week go to NewsLit.org or, click here.
