1.4 Identification of the stakeholders involved
The spreading of false information involves a variety of stakeholders, each with their own motivations and roles. On the list below, we will explore and understand some of the stakeholders involved, and what motivations lie behind the spreading of false information. Understanding the various stakeholders involved in the spread of false information is essential for developing effective strategies to address and mitigate the impact of misinformation on society.
- Content Creators: Individuals or organisation who create and disseminate false information. This can include fake news websites, social media users, bloggers, and content farms that produce sensational or misleading content for clicks and views.
- Social Media Platforms: Companies like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube provide platforms for the dissemination of information, including false information. While they may implement policies and algorithms to combat misinformation, they also profit from user engagement, which can incentivise the spread of sensational or provocative content.
- Bots: It is estimated that between 5–10% of all social media accounts are robots (bots for short). Bots can act like actual people, performing everyday tasks like sharing content, following other users, commenting, and joining in debates. However, bots are just computer algorithms – they are simply completing a series of tasks that they’ve been programmed to do. Bots can be programmed to share information that has not been validated. Furthermore, they can do this repetitively and on a large scale. Thus, they bombard social media with disinformation, and link it to trending hashtags to gain more exposure.
- Traditional Media Outlets: While traditional media outlets generally aim to uphold journalistic standards and verify information before publishing, there have been instances where false information has been inadvertently or intentionally spread by mainstream media sources.
- Politicians and Political Operatives: Politicians and their supporters may spread false information to discredit opponents, shape public opinion, or advance their own agendas. This can involve everything from misleading campaign ads to deliberate misinformation campaigns.
- Foreign Governments and State Actors: Some governments engage in disinformation campaigns to influence public opinion, sow discord, or undermine democratic institutions in other countries. This can involve the use of social media bots, fake news websites, and other tactics to spread false information.
- Interest Groups and Advocacy Organisation: Non-governmental organizations, advocacy groups, and special interest organizations may disseminate false information to further their causes or promote specific policy agendas.
- Individuals: Ordinary individuals also play a role in spreading false information when they share or amplify misleading content without verifying its accuracy. This can occur through social media sharing, forwarding emails, or simply repeating false information in conversations.
- Advertisers and Ad Networks: Advertisers may inadvertently or knowingly fund the spread of false information by placing ads on websites or social media pages that publish misleading content. Ad networks that distribute ads across the internet may also contribute to the revenue streams of fake news websites.
- Fact-Checking Organisation: While not directly involved in spreading false information, fact-checking organisation play a critical role in identifying and debunking misinformation. They provide a counterbalance to the spread of false information by verifying the accuracy of claims and providing reliable information to the public.
- Educators and Researchers: These stakeholders work to promote media literacy, critical thinking skills, and research into the spread and impact of false information. By educating the public and conducting studies on misinformation, they contribute to efforts to combat its spread.
These stakeholders can include:
- Content Creators: Individuals or organisation who create and disseminate false information. This can include fake news websites, social media users, bloggers, and content farms that produce sensational or misleading content for clicks and views.
- Social Media Platforms: Companies like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube provide platforms for the dissemination of information, including false information. While they may implement policies and algorithms to combat misinformation, they also profit from user engagement, which can incentivise the spread of sensational or provocative content.
- Bots: It is estimated that between 5–10% of all social media accounts are robots (bots for short). Bots can act like actual people, performing everyday tasks like sharing content, following other users, commenting, and joining in debates. However, bots are just computer algorithms – they are simply completing a series of tasks that they’ve been programmed to do. Bots can be programmed to share information that has not been validated. Furthermore, they can do this repetitively and on a large scale. Thus, they bombard social media with disinformation, and link it to trending hashtags to gain more exposure.
- Traditional Media Outlets: While traditional media outlets generally aim to uphold journalistic standards and verify information before publishing, there have been instances where false information has been inadvertently or intentionally spread by mainstream media sources.
- Politicians and Political Operatives: Politicians and their supporters may spread false information to discredit opponents, shape public opinion, or advance their own agendas. This can involve everything from misleading campaign ads to deliberate misinformation campaigns.
- Foreign Governments and State Actors: Some governments engage in disinformation campaigns to influence public opinion, sow discord, or undermine democratic institutions in other countries. This can involve the use of social media bots, fake news websites, and other tactics to spread false information.
- Interest Groups and Advocacy Organisation: Non-governmental organizations, advocacy groups, and special interest organizations may disseminate false information to further their causes or promote specific policy agendas.
- Individuals: Ordinary individuals also play a role in spreading false information when they share or amplify misleading content without verifying its accuracy. This can occur through social media sharing, forwarding emails, or simply repeating false information in conversations.
- Advertisers and Ad Networks: Advertisers may inadvertently or knowingly fund the spread of false information by placing ads on websites or social media pages that publish misleading content. Ad networks that distribute ads across the internet may also contribute to the revenue streams of fake news websites.
Two main actors working to combat the spreading of false information include:
- Fact-Checking Organisation: While not directly involved in spreading false information, fact-checking organisation play a critical role in identifying and debunking misinformation. They provide a counterbalance to the spread of false information by verifying the accuracy of claims and providing reliable information to the public.
- Educators and Researchers: These stakeholders work to promote media literacy, critical thinking skills, and research into the spread and impact of false information. By educating the public and conducting studies on misinformation, they contribute to efforts to combat its spread.
Check out this video that provides a detailed example of how misinformation spreads.
