The Dangers of Echo Chambers, Complacency, and Fake News

In recent years, both the American elections and Brexit sent shockwaves through the world. Thanks in part to eight years of Obama, and large steps forward for the LGBT+ community, progressivism, and equality has become the norm for what is the supposed majority of us. Thanks to the spread of fake news however, we have seen the rise of Trump, and Britain voting to leave the EU, as well as a resurgence of the right, and an increasingly polarised politics, both at home and abroad.

Should we find it so surprising? After speaking with Dr. Samuel Brazys, Associate Professor in UCD School of Politics and International Relations, a very valid point came to light: fake news manages to persist and circulate largely thanks to the existence of echo chambers. “On social media you by and large tend to be friends with people who have similar views to you so you see a lot of messages that reinforce your prior beliefs.”

Defining fake news as “a wide spectrum, from news stories that have some basis in fact that are twisted, to complete fabrication that have entered into the news cycle and political cycle,” Brazys says that as fake news stories are spread, they “reinforce beliefs you already had.” Looking at voting in the USA 2016 elections, Brazys explains that a fake news story could be circulated about Hilary Clinton, but “if you already dislike Hilary Clinton and something comes out that says ‘Hilary Clinton likes to throttle baby seals’ you may already be predisposed to believing that kind of story.”Exactly how much influence fake news has on changing the minds of the public is unclear, and is a current area of research for political scientists: “What we really want to know is how many minds are changed by fake news.”

Aiding the spread of fake news is the abundance of misinformation in the media and how it becomes more prevalent thanks to the influence of Internet sites such as Google and Facebook. Social and traditional media outlets were at a stalemate of true and false information in the lead up to Trump and Brexit votes. According to a study done by King’s College London, an incredible 4,838 articles published across twenty news outlets during the EU referendum campaign focused on immigration alone, 99 of which splayed the front pages. The majority were negative, misinformed, and gave classic signs of being ‘clickbait.’ It’s become such a regurgitated term to the point that many don’t notice or understand what clickbait is anymore. It has become normal to have a flashy title that will entice you to click on or pick up a copy.

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