Website or claim analysis

Misinformation runs rapidly on Facebook. For this blog post, I took a post from my grandfather who regularly falls for misinformation traps, especially on Facebook. By using a real example, I can better understand how to have a conversation with my family based on the information I have learned in this module and from my own research into identifying misinformation. 

While I will be using the SIFT method, first, I want to help people clearly understand why they fall for information in hopes they can better understand the need to be skeptical of all things they read. In the article “Aging in an Era of Fake News,” Nadia Brashier and Daniel Schacter take different studies to better understand why older adults can struggle in this time of social media and a plethora of fake news. The article says that when older adults see the same information over and over again, they are more likely to believe it, even if it’s false. Additionally, older adults are more likely to believe “content shared by friends and followers is accurate” and justify their belief with thoughts that their community wouldn’t spread false information. When it comes to older adults, this becomes a continuous loop in older communities on social media. 

Here is the content that was posted by my grandfather:

My grandfather's post from June 2023.

My grandfather's post from March 2024.

My grandfather posted almost the same thing two years in a row, even though both posts insinuated it was current news. 

Here is how I would advise him and others to fact-check the information using the SIFT method. 

S — Stop: With this being posted two years in a row, I would ask my grandfather if he recognized the content. Depending on his answer, I would ask him either where he first saw the information or why he doesn’t think he’s seen it anywhere else. By getting someone to stop for a moment and reflect on the information they are being presented with, it gives them another moment to be skeptical of the information. 

I — Investigate: With both of these posts being time sensitive, I would tell my grandfather to look up the information from a news source or see if any major outlets are covering the information. I would encourage him to look up META and dissect the different pieces that are being claimed in the post. Another red flag I would point out is the idea that pasting a message would alert Facebook to privacy concerns. 

F — Find better coverage: Facebook should never be the first source. I would tell my grandfather to look at who originally posted the content and why it has circulated in his friend group as opposed to other spaces. I would hope my grandfather would try to find how to best protect his privacy on social media platforms and understand the legalities of privacy online. 

T — Trace to the original context: I quickly looked up the post on Google and from a search, I learned that scammers often find people who are circulating the content and then are alerted to the fact that they are more likely to be vulnerable. By looking up the information, the term “scammers” instantly came up, which would help me see the original content had malicious intent.