Cultural Misinformation and Disinformation
We’re often persuaded or influenced by what we see and hear online. Researchers say, Black communities have been specifically targeted online by bad actors that post false information about cultural issues, attempting to increase divisions in Black communities, influence how we vote, and influence public opinions.
Help stop the spread of cultural misinformation and disinformation:
- Get information from reliable sources like experts, researchers, or organizations.
- Look up information or quotes to make sure you’re not misled by content shared out of context.
- Look beyond headlines. Check to see if unusual articles you’ve come across are satirical. Satire is often misinterpreted and shared as factual information online.
- Check the account. Was it just recently created or has zero or a very small following? It may be a troll bot. According to Bot Sentinel, “troll bots describe human controlled accounts who exhibit troll-like behavior.”
- If a story seems suspicious don’t share it with your followers.
- Do reverse Google Searches on memes or images to locate their original source.
Misinformation
mis·in·for·ma·tion
An inaccurate information and untrue statements, often shared unintentionally. Most people that spread misinformation are doing so unknowingly.
Cultural Misinformation
cul·tur·al mis·in·for·ma·tion
False information surrounding cultural issues or topics, spread unintentionally.
Disinformation
dis·in·for·ma·tion
False information that is intentionally shared, usually to create confusion or manipulate target audiences. People, organizations, or governments that spread disinformation often do so deliberately to control perceptions or to cause confusion among their target audiences.
Cultural Disinformation
cul·tur·al dis·in·for·ma·tion
False and inaccurate information surrounding cultural issues or topics that are spread with intentions of deceiving, coercing, or shaping public opinions. Cultural disinformation is fully intentional.
On misinformation
On disinformation
Tools the fight disinformation
Sources on misinformation, disinformation & Black communities
- Canaries in the coal mine: COVID-19 misinformation and Black communities
- Black Trolls Matter: Racial and Ideological Asymmetries in Social Media Disinformation
- ‘Blacktivist’ account linked to Russia raised suspicion among Baltimore activists
- Stop Online Violence Against Women: A threat to an American Democracy: Digital Voter Suppression
- What to know about ADOS, a group targeting Black progressives
- After Russian trolls target black Americans, one city fights back
- Anti-vaccine leaders targeting minority becomes growing concern at NYC forum
- Understanding ADOS: The Movement to Hijack Black Identity and Weaken Black Unity
