Raju Korti
Just as one fretted about how to identify what is termed as fake news, comes the report that fraudsters are out to take the craft to the next higher level with the help of Artificial Intelligence. I have always believed that news is and cannot be fake. It is the people who fabricate it for their vested (political) interests who are fake. The phenomenon has reached such alarming proportions now that even a self-proclaimed veteran like me with 38 years of donkey's experience behind finds it difficult to distinguish between what is real and what is fake.
The ability to make out fake news from the genuine one has created a bigger human conflict than for any other reason in recent times what with the social media queering the pitch in an era of information overkill.
A slow or a slack news day? No interesting stories coming in? Then make up or cook up a story.
That’s exactly what many journalists to do. In recent times, the agenda has been usurped by the common man from professional journalists. Citizen Journalism is a handy licence and the social media being free-for-all playground.
Fakery or fabrication of news is a situation where a journalist cooks up a non-existent story or spices up an otherwise drab or dull story just to create reader interest or for some easy fame or play to his master's tune. It is considered unethical because it compromises with the basic principles of journalism like Truth, Objectivity; and Fairness and Credibility. The disturbing fact is more and more journalists have started resorting to this unfair practice in these commercial times. With social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter becoming huge platforms of public interaction, the trend to misinform and fabricate has only increased.
Part and parcel with that access to technology comes the access to anonymity. All it takes is a basic Word Press URL, some HTML and anyone can have a credible-looking news site ready to post whatever they want. This same anonymity can grant journalists in the business the ability to push fake stories under a pseudonym. The majority of the fake news comes from people who are only too happy to slap their byline on the story for all to see. In fact there seems to be an effort to institutionalize fakery of news with imaginary and cooked up news stories circulated on fakingnews.com and such similar sites.
What prompts some journalists to fabricate news stories? Why are once considered credible news sources spreading stories that are clearly, after two seconds of Googling, untrue?
It’s not always intentional. There is a fabricator out there somewhere -- a ‘hits’ junkie who sits at his screen and watches the view meter tick up as the gullible fall for it. Usually, he is an enterprising journalist who thinks no one will find out, but often the fake stories that end up circulated go around far beyond the fabricator. At times there are journalists who are loathe to do leg work to get an authentic good story and find an easy way out by fabricating stories conceived by their fertile imagination.
Social media is a huge chunk of technology. Any savvy news website has social media bookmarks hooked directly into their articles pages, so they can be shared instantly. The danger of this is the instant-sharing itself. News can spread instantly. Minutes after a story is posted, it has the ability to be everywhere: Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, and Whatsapp -- a case of rapidly spreading cancer.
Remember that the curse that brings us instant-sharing and fake news stories that look real, also brings you access to Google anywhere you walk. A little research goes a long way in protecting credibility, but research? What's that?
Fake news headlines, stories, articles and posts are everywhere on the World Wide Web and at times, even the most rational thinkers find it difficult to determine what is genuine and what is fabrication. Internet cannot be Gospel Truth. Seeing a story written down in black and white on a web page may give it an air of authenticity, but that is not always the case.
The fact is that the Internet is overflowing with misinformation, likes, inaccurate speculation and utter nonsense. And this hasn’t been helped with a surge of websites designed purely to start rumors and print lies. Did you hear it on a Facebook post? A Tweet on Twitter? Or perhaps on some website you’ve never heard of?
The ability to make out fake news from the genuine one has created a bigger human conflict than for any other reason in recent times what with the social media queering the pitch in an era of information overkill.
A slow or a slack news day? No interesting stories coming in? Then make up or cook up a story.
That’s exactly what many journalists to do. In recent times, the agenda has been usurped by the common man from professional journalists. Citizen Journalism is a handy licence and the social media being free-for-all playground.
Fakery or fabrication of news is a situation where a journalist cooks up a non-existent story or spices up an otherwise drab or dull story just to create reader interest or for some easy fame or play to his master's tune. It is considered unethical because it compromises with the basic principles of journalism like Truth, Objectivity; and Fairness and Credibility. The disturbing fact is more and more journalists have started resorting to this unfair practice in these commercial times. With social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter becoming huge platforms of public interaction, the trend to misinform and fabricate has only increased.
Part and parcel with that access to technology comes the access to anonymity. All it takes is a basic Word Press URL, some HTML and anyone can have a credible-looking news site ready to post whatever they want. This same anonymity can grant journalists in the business the ability to push fake stories under a pseudonym. The majority of the fake news comes from people who are only too happy to slap their byline on the story for all to see. In fact there seems to be an effort to institutionalize fakery of news with imaginary and cooked up news stories circulated on fakingnews.com and such similar sites.
What prompts some journalists to fabricate news stories? Why are once considered credible news sources spreading stories that are clearly, after two seconds of Googling, untrue?
It’s not always intentional. There is a fabricator out there somewhere -- a ‘hits’ junkie who sits at his screen and watches the view meter tick up as the gullible fall for it. Usually, he is an enterprising journalist who thinks no one will find out, but often the fake stories that end up circulated go around far beyond the fabricator. At times there are journalists who are loathe to do leg work to get an authentic good story and find an easy way out by fabricating stories conceived by their fertile imagination.
Social media is a huge chunk of technology. Any savvy news website has social media bookmarks hooked directly into their articles pages, so they can be shared instantly. The danger of this is the instant-sharing itself. News can spread instantly. Minutes after a story is posted, it has the ability to be everywhere: Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, and Whatsapp -- a case of rapidly spreading cancer.
Remember that the curse that brings us instant-sharing and fake news stories that look real, also brings you access to Google anywhere you walk. A little research goes a long way in protecting credibility, but research? What's that?
Fake news headlines, stories, articles and posts are everywhere on the World Wide Web and at times, even the most rational thinkers find it difficult to determine what is genuine and what is fabrication. Internet cannot be Gospel Truth. Seeing a story written down in black and white on a web page may give it an air of authenticity, but that is not always the case.
The fact is that the Internet is overflowing with misinformation, likes, inaccurate speculation and utter nonsense. And this hasn’t been helped with a surge of websites designed purely to start rumors and print lies. Did you hear it on a Facebook post? A Tweet on Twitter? Or perhaps on some website you’ve never heard of?
The circulation of fake news depends very much on the readers not verifying what
they have heard before they pass it on, or assuming that the source was
legitimate and thus verification was not required.
A large number of websites that present their material in a typical news format have surfaced online but will routinely print false stories. These stories may be satirical or entertainment-based, or they may pretend to be satirical. Of course these sites are not reputable sources, much in the same way a Facebook post or Tweet is not a reputable source either. The business of misinformation flourishes with ignorance and failure of rationale.
A large number of websites that present their material in a typical news format have surfaced online but will routinely print false stories. These stories may be satirical or entertainment-based, or they may pretend to be satirical. Of course these sites are not reputable sources, much in the same way a Facebook post or Tweet is not a reputable source either. The business of misinformation flourishes with ignorance and failure of rationale.
In the age of information,
ignorance is a choice. What do you do when you see a person, friend or family
members share a fake news? Confronting them will only push them further away
from the truth. I have discovered that the only solution is to join them and
share stories, quotes or news that are so fake it’s actually insulting. This
can be a test too, if they agree, chances are you are dealing
with an unmitigated idiot. Ignorant people will remain
ignorant, made worse by today’s social media. Unlike the good old days, people today have too many choices. They only subscribe to Facebook news feed geared towards their political
views, further reinforcing their narrow point of views with no alternative
source. They will skip videos that they dislike on YouTube and listen to those
that agree with their social agenda, shutting out all possible
reasoning.
That is what we get for having too much freedom. Too little is as bad as too much, Left wing nuts will only listen to Left wing news, while Right wing nuts will only tune into whatever suits their interests. Both extremes are bad. A case in point is the 2016 US presidential election where so many fake news were created on either sides. Recently, the ministry of information and broadcasting issued and then withdrew guidelines on fake news. It was a well meant but ill-thought-out gambit. In the debate, the real issue got skirted. Fake news is manufactured in factories to revile, debase and smear some person, party or company. Just discussing the damage it does to democracy or the violence it sparks doesn't help. The Indian news industry should be putting its heads together to tackle it. And this is where the profession runs into a wall. Forget whether the government is trying to control the Media, what has the industry think-tank done to extricate the profession from this morass? There is no restraint, no self-control. And there are good journalists who have to compromise to pander to their owners who are mostly politicians and businessmen.
The word freedom loses its sanctity and becomes a specious excuse when it is misused. If Media literacy has become merely academic without any sensible application, the less said about people who believe that news and views are the same. I say this with some responsibility as a professional journalist and a Mass Media professor. If the news industry cannot get together to ensure that audiences stay with credible, fact-checked news, then it cannot blame anyone but itself for losing the same audience to fake news.
That is what we get for having too much freedom. Too little is as bad as too much, Left wing nuts will only listen to Left wing news, while Right wing nuts will only tune into whatever suits their interests. Both extremes are bad. A case in point is the 2016 US presidential election where so many fake news were created on either sides. Recently, the ministry of information and broadcasting issued and then withdrew guidelines on fake news. It was a well meant but ill-thought-out gambit. In the debate, the real issue got skirted. Fake news is manufactured in factories to revile, debase and smear some person, party or company. Just discussing the damage it does to democracy or the violence it sparks doesn't help. The Indian news industry should be putting its heads together to tackle it. And this is where the profession runs into a wall. Forget whether the government is trying to control the Media, what has the industry think-tank done to extricate the profession from this morass? There is no restraint, no self-control. And there are good journalists who have to compromise to pander to their owners who are mostly politicians and businessmen.
The word freedom loses its sanctity and becomes a specious excuse when it is misused. If Media literacy has become merely academic without any sensible application, the less said about people who believe that news and views are the same. I say this with some responsibility as a professional journalist and a Mass Media professor. If the news industry cannot get together to ensure that audiences stay with credible, fact-checked news, then it cannot blame anyone but itself for losing the same audience to fake news.
Albert Einstein said that his biggest fear was people will attribute fake quotes to him and millions of morons on the internet will believe it. I am sure Dr APJ Abdul Kalam realized this after he died. But wait. Did Einstein really say that?
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