Become an expert in fake news and alternative facts

Web Log: edX’s free online course aimed at educating people on how to spot fake news

These days, it feels like we are either coming across fake news and “alternative facts” or hearing about how we should tackle this growing problem.

Tech companies like Facebook and Google are working out how to eradicate false and deliberately misleading news stories but we shouldn't just rely on these platforms do tell us what to read.

MOOC (massive open online learning) platform edX is running a free course, starting on April 21st and aimed at educating the masses on how to identify fake news, unravel the biases inherent in these kinds of stories, and become proficient at critically examining the news and how it is produced.

Ideal outcome

This one-week course from the University of Michigan takes only three-four hours of online learning and the ideal outcome is that the participant will become a “critical consumer of information”.

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What constitutes propaganda in a social media age? How can you tell if a source is credible? Find out by spending a few hours watching some insightful edX lectures.