Teaching pupils to spot fake news could avoid ‘fantasy’ world
School pupils must be taught to tell the difference between fake news and genuine reporting, according to a Scottish sociology expert.
Professor Alex Law said people who don’t recognise hoaxes or deliberate misinformation, often spread via social media, risk being “swept up in hysteria or fantasies”.
Speaking at an education conference in Edinburgh, the Abertay University lecturer warned that people can be unwittingly manipulated into highly polarised viewpoints when duped by fabricated stories passed off as genuine.
Prof Law, whose research includes issues around social change and state formation, highlighted the importance to society of having citizens who are well-versed in the workings of the media and politics, particularly during current turbulence worldwide.
“It’s a worrying time because you can see where it leads,” he said. “The real problem for me is the way that fake news frightens and worries and causes anxieties that escalate social and political problems.
“My major worry is when fear comes into it through deliberate misinformation to target some sections of society as the enemy.
“People need a more critical grasp of the dynamics.
“It’s thinking about educating students in media literacy so they themselves can put it into context.”
He warned that fake news sparks “fantasies that will never happen” and said some politicians were willing to “heighten expectation and say anything to win popularity”.
He added: “If masses of people buy into that, how are we going to deal with the mass disappointment that follows?”
In a presentation to audiences at the Association for Media Education in Scotland event, Prof Law stressed the importance of youngsters being able to judge for themselves the veracity of news media.
He said the instantaneous nature of social media has “changed the game” in terms of reporting but spoke out against tightening controls and jeopardising freedom of speech.
“It is very easy to get into a scenario where there is escalation, exaggeration and distortion,” he said.
“In the interest of democracy, the last thing we want is more government regulation and we want people to be able to air opinions.”
A spokesman for the Educational Institute of Scotland, the country’s largest teaching union, added: “Clearly it is important that teachers and students are aware of the importance of validating information and sources in all areas of the curriculum.
“In specific curricular areas, such as media or modern studies, the fake news phenomenon is certainly an issue of particular relevance and interest at the current time.”