What To Do About Misinformation?

 

What To Do About Misinformation?

Social Media Is a Huge source of information - not all of it is GOOD information. Urban legends, myths, conspiracy theories "deep fakes" and other types of false information are everywhere, and it can be difficult to determine what is really true. It's bad enough if this type of information would affect or even harm us individually, but we know that it can also affect us on a global scale, such as influencing an election (and not just the US elections).

Obviously, we have to learn how to identify information that might be biased or untrue - but what about those sources that host the information, such as Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube? What responsibilities do they have?

The 60 Minutes video we watched in class talks about YouTube and its policies regarding invalid or harmful information. What do you think? Should entities like YouTube, Facebook, etc. be responsible for blocking or identifying misinformation, or should it be the responsibility of the viewer to educate themselves about how to spot "fake news"?

Your Online Image #2

 

Your Online Image #2

You are the young manager of a local ice cream parlor that is beloved by local families. You are looking to hire some teens for the summer when the shop is open late every evening. You require an application and at least one reference. It occurs to you that you could look on Facebook to find out a bit more about the applicants.

What might you find that would make you not hire someone?

Is there anything wrong with using Facebook in this way?

Below are a couple of articles that talk about how employers use social media to help screen applicants.

Keep It Clean: Social Media Screenings Gain in Popularity

Employer’s using social media in hiring process: Why do they do it?

Your Online Image #1

 

Your Online Image #1

You've discussed in your Keynote presentations about how important it is for you to be very careful when you're online.

- be careful with your personal information

- be careful about what you say about others

- be careful about language, images, etc

- be careful about secrets, embarrassing or other personal info about others

Things that you post online can also be damaging to your reputation - now, or in the future.

We're going to handle the blog differently in the next couple of weeks.  You will be presented with different scenarios, that involve online social networking.  Respond to the question(s) asked. Give your answer some thought. 

First Scenario:

You are finally old enough to join a social networking app/site and set up your own profile. You spend a lot of time adding pictures and connecting with things that you "like", and you have links to many friends. Your mom makes her own profile and asks you to be her “friend" (or let her "follow" you, etc).  What do you think about that? Explain your thinking.

Deepfakes & Democracy

 

Deepfakes & Democracy

Every day, we see -- and create! -- countless images and videos that have been edited or digitally altered. From simple Snapchat filters to short, lighthearted, or ironic TikTok videos, it’s clear that seeing and creating altered media is just part of online life today. 

But are you aware of -- or have you thought about -- the phenomenon of 'deepfake videos'? As you watch the videos, consider these questions: 

Why are faked images and videos so popular? 

How might AI or deepfake technology subvert or threaten a democratic election? 

How does the existence of this new technology change the way we see the world?

(LINK to the second video.)