The Truth About Fake News: Measuring Vulnerability to Fake News Online

• In Event: Susceptibility to Fake News And Misinformation: Who and Why?

Abstract

Recent literature on fake news identifies the types of individuals most likely to spread fake news across social media platforms. However, while previous research has shown who is sharing fake news, it has much less to say about who is most vulnerable to it. In this paper, we investigate whether or not individuals can consistently discern fake from genuine news and, if they can, what individual factors predict skill at this task. Specifically we examine the individual-level characteristics associated with correctly identifying fake news. We present results from a 7-week panel survey in which individuals evaluate fake and genuine news stories within 24 hours of their publication online. Importantly, we find respondents generally fail to correctly identify fake news, although performance varies within different demographic groups. Among other findings, our research also shows that asking respondents to seek outside evidence when evaluating veracity of news in fact makes them more susceptible to fake news. Additionally, we find that those with high digital literacy and those who are frequent consumers of news are least susceptible to fake news. Finally, in line with current theories, the ideology of individuals can explain variation in fake news vulnerability as well.

Authors

• Kevin Aslett, New York University

• William P Godel, New York University

• Nathaniel Persily, Stanford University

• Zeve Sanderson, New York University

• Joshua A. Tucker, New York University

• Jonathan Nagler, New York University

• Richard Bonneau, NYU