Moderator Opening (1 minute)

Moderator: "Welcome everyone. Today's discussion focuses on fake news, examining

its definition, motivations, real-world examples, and prevention strategies. We'll begin
with individual perspectives, followed by open discussion. Let's start with Sarah
defining fake news and sharing examples."

=> "Welcome, everyone, today’s discussion on ‘’ fake news’’. I’m [Moderator’s

Name], and I’m excited to have you guys here with me to unpack this critical issue.
Joining me are ... Before we start, i want to say that:
"False information is not new, however it has become a hot topic since 2017. The age
of the internet has enabled a whole new way to publish, share and consume
information and news with very little regulation or editorial standards. Before we
dive deeper into the impact, let’s take a step back. We hear the term 'fake news'
everywhere, but what does it really mean? A, what do u think?

Round 1: Definitions and Real-Life Examples (6 minutes) - What do you understand

about fake news? Examples ?

Sarah: "Fake news refers to deliberately fabricated stories designed to misinform the
public. The 2016 'Pizzagate' conspiracy exemplifies this phenomenon. The false
narrative claimed a Washington D.C. pizzeria hosted a child trafficking ring
connected to prominent political figures. This culminated in real-world violence when
a man armed with an assault rifle entered the restaurant to 'self-investigate,' firing
shots before being arrested. No trafficking operation existed, demonstrating how fake
news can transition from online falsehoods to physical danger. According to a 2017
study by the Oxford Internet Institute, this incident represented one of the most
dangerous manifestations of computational propaganda in recent years."

1, What do you understand by ‘’fake news’’?

=>A: "Well, fake news is basically false information that’s deliberately created to
mislead people. It could be in the form of news articles, social media posts, or even
edited images and videos. And "What makes fake news so tricky is that it often looks
like real, trustworthy sources. Some of these sites copy the names and designs of
legitimate news outlets, so people don’t always realize they’re being misled."

"Martina Chapman, a media literacy expert, actually summed it up really well—she

said fake news thrives on three things: mistrust, misinformation, and manipulation.
And honestly, I think that’s spot on." [1]

=> B: "That’s a great point. Actually, fake news comes in two main types:

First, there’s disinformation—this is when false stories are created and shared
deliberately, often for political or financial gain. The person spreading it knows it’s
fake but does it anyway, like propaganda or clickbait."

Then there’s misinformation, which isn’t always intentional. Sometimes, people share
stories without realizing they’re misleading—maybe the facts weren’t checked
properly, or some details got exaggerated." Either way, both can spread quickly and
have serious consequences.

Michael: "Building on Sarah's powerful example, fake news often weaponizes

emerging technology. Consider the deepfake video of Nancy Pelosi mentioned in our
documents - creators slowed footage to make her appear intoxicated, which rapidly
circulated on social media. Facebook's decision to keep the manipulated content
online, albeit with warning labels, sparked debate about platform responsibility. More
concerningly, comedian Jordan Peele demonstrated how AI could create entirely
fabricated videos by producing one showing former President Obama making
statements he never uttered, highlighting the growing sophistication of these deception
tools. A 2020 Forbes article reported that deepfake videos had increased 20-fold since
2019, with 60% targeting political figures
2. Example

⇒ C: A clear example of how disinformation and misinformation exploit technology is

the growing use of deepfake videos. Fake news often weaponizes emerging
technology, making deception even more convincing.
Consider the deepfake video of Nancy Pelosi ( an American politician) —creators
slowed the footage to make her appear intoxicated, and it rapidly circulated on social
media.. More concerningly, comedian Jordan Peele demonstrated how AI could
create entirely fabricated videos by producing one showing former President Obama
making statements he never uttered, highlighting the growing sophistication of these
deception tools. But the dangers of misinformation extend far beyond politics. Fake or
misleading information can have real-world consequences, especially when it comes
to public health." With fake news taking many forms, some stories can be especially
strange or unbelievable. That raises an interesting question:

What is the most unusual fake news story you have read?

Jennifer: "These technological examples Michael described reveal another disturbing

dimension - the real-world impact extends beyond politics. The document mentioned
how vaccine misinformation corresponded with measles cases reaching a 25-year high
in the United States. Similarly, during the COVID-19 pandemic, false claims about
treatments circulated widely - from drinking bleach to taking unproven medications -
resulting in actual harm as some individuals followed this dangerous advice rather
than medical guidance. This demonstrates how health-related misinformation directly
endangers public safety. The World Health Organization formally labeled this
phenomenon an 'infodemic' in February 2020, noting that misinformation during
public health emergencies can be equally dangerous as the disease itself."
⇒ D: I agree with you. We can clearly see that these technological examples Michael

described reveal another disturbing dimension—the real-world impact extends beyond

politics.
The document mentioned how vaccine misinformation corresponded with measles
cases reaching a 25-year high in the United States. Similarly, during the COVID-19
pandemic, false claims about treatments circulated widely—from drinking bleach to
taking unproven medications—resulting in actual harm as some individuals followed
this dangerous advice rather than medical guidance. This demonstrates how health-
related misinformation directly endangers public safety.
The World Health Organization formally labeled this phenomenon an 'infodemic' in
February 2020, noting that misinformation during public health emergencies can be
equally dangerous as the disease itself."

3. Why do you think fake news stories are created?

Round 2: Motivations with Documented Examples (4 minutes)

David: "Jennifer's health examples underline the serious consequences of
misinformation, which raises an important question about motivations. The provided
materials reference specific campaigns designed to manipulate public opinion. The
#Nomidterms campaign originated on 4chan with explicit intent to suppress male
voter turnout by falsely suggesting men shouldn't vote to amplify women's voices.
This demonstrates how some creators design misinformation specifically to influence
electoral outcomes through voter suppression techniques. The Computational
Propaganda Project at Oxford University documented similar coordinated
disinformation campaigns targeting 48 countries between 2019 and 2022, with
electoral manipulation being the primary objective in 73% of cases."

Emma: "David's point about electoral manipulation reveals just one facet of the
problem, as international examples show even more devastating consequences. As
mentioned in our readings, misinformation fueled actual violence and deaths in
Myanmar in 2018, while false rumors triggered deadly mob attacks in India.
Ethnically-targeted misinformation campaigns exploited existing tensions,
demonstrating how fake news creators sometimes deliberately inflame societal
divisions with fatal results. According to a 2021 United Nations report, at least 71
people died in India between 2017 and 2021 due to violence triggered by WhatsApp
rumors. The report specifically cited how the platform's end-to-end encryption created
'information black boxes' that accelerated harmful content through trusted networks."
4. What can be done to stop fake news spreading?

Round 3: Prevention Strategies with Evidence of Effectiveness (3 minutes)

Sarah: "Emma's sobering examples highlight the urgent need for effective
countermeasures. Companies like Storyful demonstrate promising approaches. During
the 2018 Thai cave rescue, they identified circulating videos claiming to show the
rescue that were actually old footage from Wisconsin. Their verification work
prevented widespread misunderstanding of the event. This shows how professional
fact-checking services can effectively intercept misinformation during breaking news
situations. According to the Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2023, countries
with established independent fact-checking organizations showed a 34% reduction in
belief of false news stories compared to those without such infrastructure."

Michael: "While Sarah's example shows the value of professional fact-checking, we

must also consider broader preventive approaches. Media literacy initiatives show
particularly promising results. A Stanford study found students who received specific
training in evaluating online sources showed significant improvement in
distinguishing legitimate news from fabrications. This suggests educational
interventions can build resilience against deception techniques, particularly when
implemented early. The landmark 2022 study by the Journal of Communication
tracked 12,000 students across eight countries and found that those receiving
structured media literacy training were 67% less likely to share unverified information
over a two-year period compared to control groups."

Closing Discussion: Evidence-Based Solutions (2 minutes)

Moderator: "Michael's point about education leads us to our final question. For our
remaining minutes, what evidence-based approaches show the most promise?"...
Jennifer: "Building on Michael's educational example, research indicates multi-faceted
approaches work best. Finland's comprehensive media literacy program, integrated
across school subjects from primary education onward, correlates with that country
having Europe's highest resistance to misinformation campaigns according to EU
assessments. This suggests early, sustained education creates collective resilience. The
European Commission's 2023 Digital Literacy Index specifically cited Finland's
approach as the gold standard, noting how their students scored 48% higher than the
EU average in identifying manipulated media content."
David: "Jennifer's national example demonstrates the value of systemic approaches,
which can be complemented by technical solutions. Platform design modifications
show measurable impact. When Twitter implemented friction in the sharing process
by prompting users to read articles before retweeting, studies showed a 40% increase
in people actually reviewing content before amplification. Simple design interventions
demonstrably reduce the velocity of misinformation spread. The 2021 study in
Science Advances analyzed 215 million tweets containing news links and found that
friction-based interventions reduced sharing of false content by 29% while having
minimal impact on sharing of verified information."

Moderator's Conclusion (1 minute)

Moderator: "David's technical example brings us full circle to the multi-layered nature
of both the problem and potential solutions. Today's discussion highlighted how fake
news manifests in our world through concrete examples like Pizzagate, vaccine
misinformation, and election interference campaigns. We've seen evidence of both the
harm caused - from public health emergencies to violence - and the effectiveness of
countermeasures like professional fact-checking, media literacy education, and
platform design modifications. The research presented today, from the Oxford Internet
Institute to the European Commission's Digital Literacy Index, demonstrates that this
complex problem requires coordinated responses at individual, institutional, and
societal levels. As the Reuters Institute noted in their 2023 report, countries
implementing multi-dimensional approaches show significantly higher resilience to
information disorder. Thank you all for your contributions to this evidence-based
discussion."

cho để ké mí cái references:

https://www.ipsos.com/en-us/news-polls/cigi-fake-news-global-epidemic

https://www.webwise.ie/teachers/what-is-fake-news/ [1]