Editor’s Notes: A sea of misinformation
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I may have written along these lines before, but a disappointing social media post I saw recently from a person I consider to be intelligent and ethical made me decide it's time to give it another go.
After all, I don't think the marriage of artificial intelligence and social media had become so very dangerous the last time I visited the topics of fact-checking and media bias.
Artificial intelligence can produce what look like real photos, and an unethical, agenda-driven sharer can spread those photos without disclosing their creation. After that, a person who does not realize the photo isn't genuine can share it, truly believing it to be real.
And the damage is done.
Please, try to find the sources for photos -- especially if they seem too "good" to be true ... if they fit your desired narrative too perfectly.
Meanwhile, those who are desperate enough to spread faked photos have for many years already been sharing intentionally false "articles" and social media posts. That sort of thing is only going to increase in the coming months.
Please find a good fact-checking website to combat it.
The Berkeley Library at the University of California put together a list of the best fact checkers. At the top was Pulitzer Prize-winning Politifact (politifact.com), which rates the accuracy of claims made. Others include FactCheck.org, a nonpartisan "consumer advocate" for voters; OpenSecrets.org, a project of the Center for Responsive Politics that looks particularly into tracking money in U.S. politics; the Washington Post's Fact Checker website (washingtonpost.com/politics/fact-checker/); Snopes.com, which covers claims from a variety of fields, not just politics; and the Duke Reporters' Lab project to fact check news, at reporterslab.org/fact-checking/.
Another tool news-consuming voters must explore is the Media Bias Chart by ad fontes media. The company bills itself as "helping people better navigate the news since 2018," and has created a chart that rates major news sources in terms of both reliability (accuracy) and political bias.
Please, go play with the chart. Search your preferred news source and look at where it lands. Then look at the sources that are ranked both closest to the middle of the political bias spectrum AND highest on the news value and reliability scale.
As you incorporate those tools into your news and social media consumption, also consider whether you have put yourself into an echo chamber -- whether you are choosing to consume information from sources that give you what they think you want to hear.
Do you view the presentation of facts that don't align with your opinions as "bias?" Do you view the presentation of facts about a candidate or an issue as an attack?
I will tell you that here at the newspapers we get calls regularly from those accusing us of being biased in favor of one side or the other. I count it as a sign that we are doing our jobs properly that those complaints continue to come from BOTH sides of the political spectrum.
Reporters here, and in most local newsrooms, work very hard to ensure they are reporting fairly, accurately and without agenda. That is our responsibility and we take pride in serving our readers by meeting it.
It's going to be a rough ride from now until Nov. 5. Buckle up, fact check, and think carefully about the information you consume -- and what you choose to share.
Christina Myer is executive editor of The Parkersburg News and Sentinel. She can be reached via e-mail at cmyer@newsandsentinel.com