Diffusion of Disinformation: How Social Media Users Respond to Fake News and Why

The Impact of Fake News on Society

Question (100 marks)Fake news is a type of disinformation, which intentionally misleads readers with false information packaged as news. There hasbeen increasing researchon fake news in recent years, as the spread of fake news can influence various aspects of our society, such as politics, economy, etc.Tandoc, Lim, and Ling (2020) investigated howsocial media users in Singapore responded to fake news they encountered on social media and possible reasons for their responses. In this study, the researchers used both survey and interview methods to investigate the research questions. Read the article (see reference below; you can access the article via SUSS library). Tandoc, E. C., Lim, D., & Ling, R. (2020). Diffusion of disinformation: How social media users respond to fake news and why. Journalism, 21(3), 381–398. Analyseand critique the given study. Applyrelevant concepts and information from course materials, the required reading, and additional research to answer the following questions. (a)Recogniseand appreciateethical issues concerning research participants in this study. Specifically,?Examineat least twoethical concerns about the protection of research participants in the context of the given study. ?For each ethical concern you identify, discussaction(s) the researchers took, or could have taken, to protect the research participants in this studyb)Examinethe advantages and disadvantages of using quantitative versus qualitative methods to study social media users’ reactions to fake news. Specifically,?Discussat least twoadvantages of using quantitative methods, as compared to qualitative methods, in the context of this study. ?Discussat least twoadvantages of using qualitative methods, as compared to quantitative methods, in the context of this study. (c)In this study, the researchers investigated individuals’ reactions to fake news on social media usinga survey. Proposewaysto improve the survey. Specifically, ?Proposeone improvement that can be made tothe surveyto obtain a better understating of individuals’ reactions to fake news on social media in Singapore, and explainyour rationale. ?Discusshow you cancollect evidence to assess thevalidityand reliabilityof the survey. (d)Explainthe importance of studying individuals’ responses to fake news on social media in Singapore, and why it is preferable to study this issue throughsocial and behavioural science research rather thannon-scientific ways (such as personal experiences).