Fake News and Media Skepticism in Non-Democracies

• In Event: Misinformation: How and Why Misinformation Is Spread

Abstract

I examine how citizens in an authoritarian media environment distinguish between false and true news information, and whether political attitudes or media preferences affect such judgments. My analysis is based on several studies in which more than 50,000 Russian participants evaluated over 60 true and false news headlines. On average, participants perform similarly regardless of their level of government support or preferred media sources. However, I find widespread skepticism about any news information. Moreover, there are substantial political biases that affect judgments about news veracity. Supporters of Russian President Vladimir Putin and those who rely on state-run media often fail to recognize false stories with a pro-government slant; Putin critics and those who learn news from independent media, on the other hand, often fail to recognize false stories that criticize the government. These biases can have a major impact on citizens' political knowledge and news awareness.

Author

• Anton Shirikov, University of Wisconsin-Madison