Skip to main navigation Skip to search Skip to main content

In news we trust? Examining credibility and sharing behaviors of fake news

  • SUNY Buffalo

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

47 Scopus citations

Abstract

New communication technologies afford individuals the ability to not only consume media, but also create and share content with others. The purpose of this study is to investigate various factors that influence perceptions of credibility and sharing behaviors. Unfortunately, information disseminated via the Internet does not always contain factual, unbiased information. This study randomly assigned 207 participants to one of six conditions where they were exposed to news articles containing factual or false information and one of three political frames (balanced, right-leaning, left-leaning) to identify the environmental (distraction levels and screen size) and individual factors (political interest and religiosity) that influence perceptions of credibility and sharing behavior. Results suggests that credibility positively influenced sharing behavior, regardless of condition. Additionally, political interest was found as a positive predictor of sharing behavior and religiosity was found as a positive predictor of credibility. Findings are discussed in terms of theoretical and practical implications.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publication10th International Conference on Social Media and Society
Subtitle of host publicationRethinking Privacy and Trust, SMSociety 2019
PublisherAssociation for Computing Machinery
Pages136-147
Number of pages12
ISBN (Electronic)9781450366519
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 19 2019
Event10th International Conference on Social Media and Society: Rethinking Privacy and Trust, SMSociety 2019 - Toronto, Canada
Duration: Jul 19 2019Jul 21 2019

Publication series

NameACM International Conference Proceeding Series

Conference

Conference10th International Conference on Social Media and Society: Rethinking Privacy and Trust, SMSociety 2019
Country/TerritoryCanada
CityToronto
Period07/19/1907/21/19

Keywords

  • Credibility
  • Fake news
  • Sharing behavior

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'In news we trust? Examining credibility and sharing behaviors of fake news'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this