What’s wrong with fake news? How would news literacy help?
Channel: HKU Journalism & Media
Date: 13/10/2017

JMSC lunchtime talks: Journalism in the Age of "Fake News"
4 October 2017
Dr. Masato Kajimoto, Assistant Professor of Practice

Why do we fall for fake news? Although intentionally misleading news stories with cherry-picked or made-up facts have been with us from the beginning of modern-day journalism, development of new communication technologies seem to be advancing faster than news literacy education can adapt. In Asia, the rapid adoption of smartphones has provided an ecosystem in which misinformation and disinformation can be produced and disseminated at the stroke of a key within minutes. But little is known about the way fake news works in this part of the world. Which platform does it spread? Who is producing it and why? Why do certain topics and issues become targets in some countries and not others?

In this workshop-style discussion seminar, Dr. Masato Kajimoto will showcase different types of “fake” news and demonstrate some useful techniques the news audience and journalists can employ to tackle misinformation. Dr. Kajimoto is the co-creator of Making Sense of the News: News Literacy Lessons for Digital Citizens, a massive open online course (MOOC) offered in partnership with Stony Brook University’s Center for News Literacy.

Visit https://jmsc.hku.hk for more information about our news literacy and fact-checking efforts.