L.6 - Contemporary Issues and Trends

Information Literacy (UNESCO, 2005)

Enables people to interpret and make informed judgments as users and producers of information.

Information Obesity

Overabundance and misunderstanding of information.

Information Disorder

Polluted discourse: Misinformation, Disinformation, Malinformation.

Misinformation

False info with no intent to harm; unintentional (wrong captions, satire taken literally).

Disinformation

False info deliberately created to harm; tool in info warfare; fabricated content, conspiracy theories, counter-knowledge.

Malinformation

Info based on reality but taken out of context to harm; used to malign.

Satire or Parody

No intention to harm but can fool; examples: The Adobo Chronicles, The Onion.

False Connection

Headlines, visuals, captions don’t support content; “You won’t believe what happens next” style clickbait.

Misleading Content

Misleading use of info to frame issues or individuals.

False Context

Genuine content shared with false contextual info.

Imposter Content

Genuine sources impersonated.

Manipulated Content

Genuine info or images manipulated to deceive (photoediting/photoshopping).

Fabricated Content

New content 100% false, designed to deceive and harm.

Elements of Information Disorder

Agent, Message, Interpreter

Agent

Creator/producer/distributor of info and their motivation.

Message

Type, format, characteristics of the message.

Interpreter

Receiver of message and their interpretation/actions.

STEPPS

Why things go viral: Social Currency, Triggers, Emotion, Public, Practical Value, Stories.

SIFT Method

Stop, Investigate, Find better coverage, Trace claims to original context.

Information Obesity

Failure to use information resources sustainably

Causes of Information Obesity

Lack of understanding tech change, economic pressures, poor info environment management.

Problems of Information Obesity (Smith, 2014)

Lack of creativity, plagiarism, dumbing down media, conspiracy theories, privacy loss.

Solutions to Information Obesity (Smith, 2014)

Manage attention, turn off distractions, use personal info tools, curate content, join conversations.