By Rishima Sachdeva & Meir Singh Pandher
Misinformation isn’t spread on purpose but is still so harmful. Even if someone wishes well, misinformation can cause a lot of trouble, especially today when most of the youth uses social media as their main source of news.
Grave consequences occur when misinformation is spread. When misinformation is spread it causes panic and paranoia among the public. Paranoia is never good, especially not when it’s over information that wasn’t even meant to be fake. The people who spread this kind of news typically never fact-check it or even google it to make sure it’s not false. While they are not the ones to blame, they still play a big part in this spread of misinformation.
Dr. Roy Perlis partnered with his peers and colleagues to conduct an on going survey about COVID-19. While in the beginning this had not even the slightest connection to fake news, as misinformation about COVID-19 surged and survey participants reported worse mental health, Perlis wondered: Could depression make people vulnerable to misinformation?
A hallmark of depression, negative cognitive bias typically makes someone more likely to remember the worst thoughts, feelings, and events — and to dwell on them. Faced with an onslaught of terrible news during a pandemic, Perlis thought that people with depression might experience more skepticism, disbelief, and distrust.
Even worse is that this misinformation suppresses and clouds the real and authentic news. If someone believes in certain information about the vaccine which isn’t true, there’s no reason for them to believe the information that’s true. They already have the information that they need, whether it be true or false. This is a major problem nowadays with algorithms of major companies like Google. A person who believes that coke causes cancer is only recommended searches that agree because he is recommended what he likes.
Something that many people still don’t believe is that fake news can actually cause serious harm. Diet culture is the best example. People who are insecure about their body are vulnerable and will do anything that gets their dream body in no time. That may include some tea that magically makes you thinner or some weight-loss supplements. They will then spread this news to their friends if they get even a little thinner. This creates a chain of misinformation that is harmful to all involved.
Misinformation causes paranoia, serious harm and clouds authentic news. All this could be solved by just fact-checking news before you pass it on to someone. It’s really as easy as that.