Don’t correct disinformation. Prevent it

October 3, 2024
Sofia Belardinelli
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A new report by ALDA Europe delves into the current state of digital literacy in Europe and shows how to effectively tackle the ongoing “disinformation epidemic.” We must consider that, through social and emotional factors, we all contribute to disinformation by being inattentive users in the digital environment. The key is empowering people with tools to prevent misinformation.

 

Today, we are immersed in a digital environment where news, messages, photos, and videos constantly reach us, finding their way into every aspect of our daily lives. It’s no surprise, then, that some theorists argue that we live in an “information society” – one of its main challenges being a range of “information disorders” that constitute the ongoing (dis)information epidemic, also referred to as an “infodemic.”

In July 2024, ALDA, the European Association for Local Democracy, published a report assessing the current state of media literacy across European citizens. The report highlights the crucial role that conscious and responsible use of the digital environment plays in sustaining democracy in the digital age.

While society recognises the spread of disinformation – often called “fake news” – as a significant global challenge, there is less understanding of what disinformation actually is and how it spreads. ALDA’s report emphasises that focusing solely on the true/false dichotomy and simply learning to distinguish “real” from “fake” news is not enough. Instead, it stresses the importance of recognising that “misinformation also spreads due to the lack of awareness with which users share untrustworthy content.” Our beliefs, worldviews, emotions, and behaviours all shape how we engage with the digital environment, potentially making us more susceptible to disinformation.

Adopting this “ecological” perspective on information disorders is a step in the right direction toward effectively combating them. It means acknowledging that much of the infodemic is not caused by an external enemy but is often fuelled by our own unconscious and distracted engagement with the online environment.

With this understanding, it becomes easier to identify the most effective measures for addressing this issue. An evidence-based approach that considers the cognitive, social, behavioural, and emotional aspects driving our belief in disinformation has shown that corrective measures, such as fact-checking, aimed at filling a supposed lack of information as a solution to disinformation, often fall short when used alone. They must be paired with other types of interventions to be genuinely effective.

Scholars have categorised the most effective interventions against disinformation into four main types:

  • Debunking: Fact-checking efforts that help reduce disinformation’s influence on individual users but are challenging to scale and often fail to penetrate echo chambers;
  • Nudging: Encouraging behaviour changes that promote accuracy and intentionality when interacting with the digital environment;
  • Automation: The use of software to automatically identify disinformation, providing users with up-to-date and accurate information;
  • Boosting: Preventive interventions that enhance users’ skills and reduce the cognitive, social, and emotional weaknesses that make them more vulnerable to fake news.

Boosting, in particular, can be divided into two approaches: pre-bunking and media literacy. Pre-bunking, also known as “psychological inoculation,” works preventively—as the vaccine analogy suggests—by building immunity to disinformation before users encounter it.

On the other hand, media literacy focuses on developing the essential skills digital users need to navigate the online news environment effectively. It has proven to be successful “in developing lateral thinking and other strategies to better navigate the digital news environment.” Media literacy also offers high scalability potential, as it can leverage multipliers—such as training teachers, who in turn educate students—potentially triggering a widespread sharing of knowledge. Media literacy can also be directly implemented on social media platforms to reach a broader audience.

 

Find the complete report on ALDA's website

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