Learning To Spot Fake News: Start With A Gut Check
A new approach seeks to equip university students with the tools of fact-checkers.
Which of these statements seems more trustworthy to you?
1) Americans are drowning in a tsunami of ignorance! There is a conspiracy at the highest levels to replace all knowledge with propaganda and disinformation.
2) A recent Stanford University report found that more than 80 percent of middle schoolers didn't understand that the phrase "sponsored content" meant "advertising."
For most of the NPR audience, this shouldn't be a tough question. The first sentence is a florid, mislabeled statement of opinion with an unverifiable, overgeneralized, ideological claim ("conspiracy at the highest levels").
The second is more measured in tone and limited
