2 - Misinformation and Disinformation on Social Media

Hannah Diffee

Professor Reppert

Reporting and Writing for the Mass Media

Fall 2024

2 - Misinformation and Disinformation on Social Media

With the introduction and rising popularity of social media platforms, information is more easily accessible than ever before. Platforms like Facebook, X (Twitter), TikTok, and Instagram allow users to quickly find information about the topics they are interested in from anywhere in the world. However, not all information on social media is reliable or accurate. 

Misinformation

"Fake news" has become widespread on the internet and social media. It comes in three primary forms: misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation. Misinformation is unintentionally misleading. This includes "click bait" titles (like the thumbnail from YouTuber Joey Graceffa below), satire (such as content from the Babylon Bee), and accidental false information. These actions are not driven by malicious intent; rather, they aim to attract media attention, contribute humor to a situation, or keep people informed. 

Above: While weighing his new husky puppies, Graceffa became confused and accidentally mixed up some of their weights. His stricken face in the thumbnail, paired with the vague title, makes the situation appear much more dire than it was. 

'Misinformation' was dictionary.com's 2018 word of the year. 

Disinformation 

Disinformation comes with the specific intent to deceive. Deepfakes, information taken out of context, and completely inaccurate claims fall into this category. In January, explicit AI-generated images of Taylor Swift flooded social media. One post gained over 45 million views before it was removed. Swift's fans quickly reported the photos, prompting Twitter to momentarily block searches of her name on the platform. In response to the images, a group of U.S. senators introduced a bill that would criminalize the spread of "nonconsensual, sexualized images generated by artificial intelligence (The Guardian). The bill was passed by the Senate in July. 

 In August, another AI-generated image of Taylor Swift depicting her endorsement of Donald Trump surfaced. The original image read, "Taylor wants you to vote for Joe Biden," but it was altered to say, "Taylor wants you to vote for Donald Trump." The former president shared the image on his social media platform, Truth Social, accompanied by the caption, "I support!" Swift took to Instagram to address the image, expressing her support for Democratic candidate Kamala Harris and urging fans to vote in the November election.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift)

Malinformation 
Malinformation is the "deliberate publication of private information for personal or corporate rather than public interest, such as revenge porn" (University of Minnesota). Examples include the leaking of classified government documents, blackmailing, and "doxxing," the sharing of someone's private information such as their phone number, address, or IP address. 

To be a responsible internet user, one must know the differences between misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation and distinguish when online information intends to cause more harm than good.