Fake News!

 Blog Post #1

With social media being a big part of many people's lives, it's easy to fall for and create fake news. Especially about big events, from celebrity scandals to large natural disasters. While some may seem like light-hearted jokes, others can be extremely disrespectful to victims and their families. There are many examples of fake news that can be found on social media. I will be sharing some examples of light-hearted fake news and fake news that have caused a lot of harm to others. 

I enjoy listening to and consuming K-Pop content, so many of the posts I see in my feed are related to that subject. Many fans online tend to post fake edits of their idols to get a laugh. One of the most memorable posts for me was about CIX member, Hyunsuk.  User mari4president posted on TikTok an image of Hyunsuk with a toddler claiming that it was his and that he is a single father. At first, I believed it. I could see the resemblance between the two, I did not find out until later that they were siblings. I got a good laugh out of it!

Some fake news can bring laughter because of the non-serious nature. However, that is not the case for most fake news posts. With big world events, like the current war in Ukraine, many people will talk about it on social media. Some information is formative on ways to help and others are just ways to get engagement on their accounts. For example, many organizations and companies are posting ways other people can donate to help people in Ukraine. Some people may use this as an opportunity to get engagement (shares, comments, etc). One account on Instagram claimed they would donate a dollar to Ukraine for every share, comment and like. However, this was a ploy to get engagement and never had a way to fund their post. Other than fake donation posts, other people are also posting videos and pictures of ruins claiming they're from Ukraine. When in reality, they are from the explosion in Lebanon in 2020. 

Photo of the Beirut Explosion (from BBC)

Fake news on social media is common, but can be avoided if we look for the signs, like checking the source.