Fake news: belief in post-truth

2017 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 386-392 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nick Rochlin
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Fake News ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Fundamental Misunderstanding ◽  
Information Professionals

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to illustrate that the current efforts to combat the epidemic of fake news – compiling lists of fake news sites, flagging stories as having been disputed as “fake,” downloading plug-ins to detect fake news – show a fundamental misunderstanding of the issue. Design/methodology/approach This paper explores the plummeting believability ratings in conventional news outlets, as well as current efforts to combat fake news. These concepts are situated in the post-truth era, in which news is upsold on the notion of belief and opinion. Findings This paper finds that, in combination with a general mistrust of all news, a fundamental flaw in the system of clicks-as-reward allows fake news and other clickbait to gain unobstructed virality. Originality/value Fake news is a widely discussed topic right now. As this is primarily an issue of information literacy, library and information professionals need to understand, discuss, and address this issue as one that is directly related to the profession.

What’s trending in the library cybersphere – Recent conferences and posts focus on data and information literacy

2017 ◽  
Vol 34 (6) ◽  
pp. 21-22
Author(s):  
Adetoun A. Oyelude
Keyword(s):  
Data Analysis ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
George Washington ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Past ◽  
The World ◽  
Information Professionals ◽  
Usual Process ◽  
Washington University

Purpose This edition looks at trending snippets mainly from library conferences around the world in the past few months. Design/methodology/approach The conferences and the themes reflect the thoughts and focus of library and information professionals worldwide as seen in internet reports from wikis and blogs. Findings Thus far, data and data management is the most focused topic of 2017. Social implications Daniel Shapiro in his report on the LITA blog described his experience at the two-day workshop organized by the Library of Congress, George Washington University and George Mason University. Originality/value The workshop titled “Collections as data: hack-to-learn” had four datasets and five tools to work with. Over the two-day period, participants worked with data tools such as OpenRefine, Voyant, MALLET, Gephi and Carto. Working with the data and data analysis tools for Shapiro yielded results, but the usual process in research of formulating hypothesis is still crucial even with all the deluge of data.

Creation, dissemination and mitigation: toward a disinformation behavior framework and model

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Naresh Kumar Agarwal ◽  
Farraj Alsaeedi
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Fake News ◽  
Comprehensive Understanding ◽  
User Perspective ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Critical Thought ◽  
Information Professionals ◽  
Primary Contribution

PurposeThis paper seeks to disambiguate the phenomenon by clarifying terms, highlighting current efforts, including the importance of critical thought and awareness, and a test for genuine serendipity.Design/methodology/approachThe authors review the literature, primarily from a library and information science perspective, and arrive at a theoretical framework and model.FindingsThe authors find various initiatives to fight fake news. Building upon Karlova and Fisher's (2013) model as well as research on critical thinking and serendipity, the primary contribution of the paper is a disinformation behavior framework and model. The model includes both the problem of disinformation from a creator and user perspective, as well as the solutions to fight it.Research limitations/implicationsThe framework will guide practitioners and researchers in library and information science and beyond, as well as other stakeholders in both understanding the phenomenon, and leading the fight against it.Originality/valueThe spreading of false information has become an alarming phenomenon in the last few years, leading to the popularity of terms such as misinformation, disinformation, infodemic and fake news. While information professionals have been called upon to lead the fight against fake news, in the lack of a comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon, current efforts have been isolated and inadequate. Most models of information behavior deal with information, and not misinformation or disinformation per se.

Return to relevance

2015 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-6
Author(s):  
Robert Fox
Keyword(s):  
Literature Review ◽  
Web Sites ◽  
Web Site ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Library Science ◽  
User Needs ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Web Presence ◽  
Design Philosophy ◽  
Information Professionals

Purpose – In order to continue to respond to patron needs in a relevant way, it is necessary to continuously reevaluate the central message that the library website is intended to convey. It ' s necessary to question assumptions, listen to user needs, and shift our paradigm to make the library web presence as effective as possible. Design/methodology/approach – This is a regular viewpoint column. A basic literature review was done prior to the column being written. Findings – The library Web site remains, in many respects, the “first face” of the library for patrons. To remain relevant, traditional methodologies used in library science may need to be set aside or catered to the needs of the patron. Originality/value – Various methods regarding design philosophy are explored which may be of use to information professionals responsible for the design and content of the library Web sites.

Marketing and delivering information literacy on the web, yesterday and today, from 2009 to 2012

2014 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 10-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharon Q. Yang
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Web Sites ◽  
Academic Libraries ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Status ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
The Web ◽  
Made In

Purpose – This study aims to ascertain the trends and changes of how academic libraries market and deliver information literacy (IL) on the web. Design/methodology/approach – The author compares the findings from two separate studies that scanned the Web sites for IL-related activities in 2009 and 2012, respectively. Findings – Academic libraries intensified their efforts to promote and deliver IL on the web between 2009 and 2012. There was a significant increase in IL-related activities on the web in the three-year period. Practical implications – The findings describe the status quo and changes in IL-related activities on the libraries’ Web sites. This information may help librarians to know what they have been doing and if there is space for improvement. Originality/value – This is the only study that spans three years in measuring the progress librarians made in marketing and delivering IL on the Web.

The trained and untrained users’ mental models compatibility with the icons of search modules in Iranian digital library applications

2017 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 290-302 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sanaz Rahrovani ◽  
Mahdieh Mirzabeigi ◽  
Javad Abbaspour
Keyword(s):  
User Interface ◽  
Mental Models ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Digital Library ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
User Group ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Software Applications ◽  
Fields Of Study ◽  
Study Results

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the trained and untrained users’ mental models compatibility with search module icons in three Iranian digital library applications, namely, Nika, Azarakhsh, and Simorgh. Design/methodology/approach The population of this survey consisted of two groups including trained and untrained users. The trained user group consisted of 174 samples, all of which were included in the study due to scarcity of the samples. The untrained user group consisted of 8,210 samples, from which 267 cases were selected through stratified sampling. Findings Results showed that the trained users’ mental models were more compatible with the search module icons than those of the untrained users. The comparison of three software applications showed that the mental models of trained and untrained users had the highest compatibility with the search icons of Azarakhsh and the lowest compatibility with those of Nika. Concerning the untrained users’ status in terms of their fields of study, results showed that users majoring technical and engineering field and those in agriculture had, respectively, the highest and lowest mental models compatibility with the icons embedded in the user interface of the studied applications. Originality/value Since the mental models may be incomplete or inaccurate, the study of the trained and untrained users’ mental models compatibility with the search module icons of user interface embedded in various library applications may help in assessing the software’ status and the designers’ level of success in conveying the content. This also may assist information literacy specialists to estimate the required amount of training for trained and untrained users.

Examining digital information literacy as a determinant of women's online shopping behavior

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Munazza Mahmood ◽  
Syeda Hina Batool ◽  
Muhammad Rafiq ◽  
Muhammad Safdar
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Online Shopping ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Shopping Behavior ◽  
Digital Information ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Information Literacy Skills ◽  
Information Professionals ◽  
Online Shopping Behavior

PurposeThe present study aims to examine the current digital information literacy (DIL) skills of female online shoppers in Lahore city of Pakistan. Data were gathered from a purposive sampling of women, aged between 20–50 years who were buying products online, not from the traditional retail stores. Out of 309 received questionnaires, 269 responses were useable and were utilized for data analysis. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to deduce inferences.Design/methodology/approachQuantitative research approach was employed for this study, and a survey was conducted to collect the data from the study's respondents. For data analysis, descriptive and inferential statistics were used.FindingsResults revealed that the digital information literacy skills of women were good to a moderate level. However, they were not confident in applying advanced searching options. In accordance with what was hypothesized in a directional hypothesis, DIL was found to be a strong predictor of online shopping behavior of women, consequently highlighting the importance of such competencies in modern life. Other findings illustrate that participating women rarely engaged in online shopping and felt hesitation in using credit/debit card for online transactions.Research limitations/implicationsThese observations highlight the important role of information professionals in creating digital literacy among different population groups, specifically women, by planning digital information instruction through courses, workshops and trainings. This could eventually be possible with the dynamic role of librarians or information professionals in the society.Originality/valueThe present study adopts the unique approach of measuring online shopping behavior of female shoppers in connection with their digital information literacy skills.

Fake news on Facebook: examining the impact of heuristic cues on perceived credibility and sharing intention

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Khudejah Ali ◽  
Cong Li ◽  
Khawaja Zain-ul-abdin ◽  
Muhammad Adeel Zaffar
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Fake News ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Perceived Credibility ◽  
News Credibility ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Active Processing

PurposeAs the epidemic of online fake news is causing major concerns in contexts such as politics and public health, the current study aimed to elucidate the effect of certain “heuristic cues,” or key contextual features, which may increase belief in the credibility and the subsequent sharing of online fake news.Design/methodology/approachThis study employed a 2 (news veracity: real vs fake) × 2 (social endorsements: low Facebook “likes” vs high Facebook “likes”) between-subjects experimental design (N = 239).FindingsThe analysis revealed that a high number of Facebook “likes” accompanying fake news increased the perceived credibility of the material compared to a low number of “likes.” In addition, the mediation results indicated that increased perceptions of news credibility may create a situation in which readers feel that it is necessary to cognitively elaborate on the information present in the news, and this active processing finally leads to sharing.Practical implicationsThe results from this study help explicate what drives increased belief and sharing of fake news and can aid in refining interventions aimed at combating fake news for both communities and organizations.Originality/valueThe current study expands upon existing literature, linking the use of social endorsements to perceived credibility of fake news and information, and sheds light on the causal mechanisms through which people make the decision to share news articles on social media.

Getting acquainted with social networks and apps: talking about TikTok

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Katie Elson Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Social Networks ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Social Media Platform ◽  
The Social ◽  
Media Platform ◽  
Information Professionals

Purpose This paper aims to provide information and promote discussion around the social media platform TikTok. Design/methodology/approach Research, literature review. Findings Libraries and library and information professionals should be aware of the potential of TikTok for engagement and information sharing. Originality/value Adds to the research on the social media platform TikTok.

“StatLit: tactical interventions for strategic transformation”

2017 ◽  
Vol 34 (9) ◽  
pp. 10-14
Author(s):  
Seth Porter ◽  
Ameet Doshi
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Literacy Instruction ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
Statistical Reasoning ◽  
Statistical Literacy ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Research Libraries ◽  
Biennial Conference ◽  
Strategic Transformation

Purpose This paper was inspired by an Association of College and Research Libraries Biennial Conference 2017 roundtable that aimed to transform existing notions about statistical literacy in information literacy instruction. Design/methodology/approach In Baltimore, the authors facilitated an in-person discussion and synchronous virtual dialogue via Twitter and Periscope about teaching basic statistical concepts (such as mean vs median) and the real implications of “statistical significance”. Findings A recording of the roundtable is available here: http://bit.ly/StatLit. Originality/value The goal of the StatLit roundtable was to inspire transformational thinking for teaching basic statistical reasoning to students within a library context.

Google classroom for librarians: features and opportunities

2015 ◽  
Vol 32 (9) ◽  
pp. 1-3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Izenstark ◽  
Katie L. Leahy
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Literacy Instruction ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Seamless Integration ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Information Literacy Instruction ◽  
Hands On

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to share possible opportunities for librarians, faculty and students with access to Google Classroom, and it includes a discussion of its application and functionality in information literacy sessions. Design/methodology/approach – This paper describes the functionality of Google Classroom with a review of its capabilities for providing information literacy instruction based on hands-on use in several classes and observation. Findings – Google Classroom streamlined delivery of materials with students in one-time and multi-meeting classes. Students appreciated its seamless integration with their university email accounts. Originality/value – Librarians teaching classes often need to share introductory information, exercises and supplemental materials with students. Google Classroom offers a simple platform for this purpose.

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