Disinformation Lookback

What is Disinformation?

On August 7^th at Koelbel Library, Arapahoe Libraries held the event, "Community Conversation: Decoding Fact from Fiction in the Era of Disinformation". This was our best-ever attended Community Conversation, which tells us that this is a topic our patrons care deeply to discuss.

We heard from panelists Laura Frank, Vera Azuka Idam, and Mike Littwin, about their experiences in the world of journalism. The night began with some clarifying definitions:

• Misinformation: False or inaccurate information that is spread unintentionally or by mistake.
• Disinformation: The content is knowingly false and has a specific purpose to cause harm, whether for political, financial, or other motives.
• Malinformation: Information that is based on facts but is used out of its original context to harm or manipulate an individual, organization, or country.

The conversation then explored the ways in which information with and without its prefixes is shared. As our panel was comprised of journalists, and the audience and panelists alike were older adults, much of the conversation was spent lamenting how funding for newspapers has decreased dramatically since the 1970’s ‘newspaper wars.’ Mike, a celebrated Colorado journalist, talked at length about how papers are closing, with half the staff they had during that golden age. This was cited as a factor in the spread of misinformation – that there simply aren’t enough writers and editors employed to address the context around given stories. Laura spoke about how the public often isn’t aware of the behind-the-scenes steps that are taken to ensure information is correct – that there are ways to discern what information is true or false, and that journalists are held to a code of ethics.

Addressing Disinformation and Social Media

During our Roundtable discussion, we asked the question, who do you trust to help address disinformation? My table was a bit at a loss. One participant said that anyone you receive information from is a brand – you just have to find a brand that you trust. I reminded them that librarians are here to help us do exactly this – identify sources and accuracy from a perspective without a profit incentive. This is the age of social media, where all is flattened to one screen – mis, dis, mal and the like – one where third-spaces are treated as a relic of the past, not a living institution.

And so of course, social media was a large topic of conversation. As the only Gen Z person in the room, I felt the need to speak up and address some misinformation in the room – that not all information found on social media is false or less reliable than a legacy media company. That in fact, there are far more ways to receive first-hand sources, international and local news on social media. It’s all about media literacy. But there is no denying that social media is the accelerant of the disinformation crisis we find ourselves in – media literacy is not a given.

Our panelist Vera discussed her background, writing for the African diaspora in Colorado, and noted how disinformation often targets marginalized groups, taking advantage of that missing context noted earlier in the conversation. This ultimately highlighted the need to support local journalism – that people ought to strive to trust their neighbors.

Isn’t this the paradox of trust? That we can’t ever fully know what is true, even within our own hearts? Bad actors take advantage of the existential absurdism that has sprung from truth and fiction’s blurring. But we have to trust that even though 100% certainty may never be possible – truth still exists, so long we keep reaching towards it.

Check out the local news from our panelists: COLab, opens a new window, Afrik Digest, opens a new window, and The Colorado Sun, opens a new window.