This story was revealed in collaboration with Headway, a brand new initiative at The New York Occasions. Chalkbeat and Headway have been posing questions concerning the presidential election to educators and highschool college students since February. We’ve got heard from greater than 1,000 college students and 200 academics throughout the nation.
This presidential election yr, younger Individuals are navigating a chaotic world of knowledge, usually with restricted instruments to differentiate what’s credible, what’s questionable, and what’s downright false.
A current survey of greater than 1,000 youngsters carried out by the Information Literacy Challenge discovered that whereas many younger folks can detect photos generated by synthetic intelligence with ease, they battle to distinguish information from commentary and ads and frequently encounter conspiracy theories on social media. Eight in 10 respondents stated they believed at the least a type of conspiracy theories.
Younger, first-time voters and their friends informed us that they frequently encountered false info on-line concerning the traditionally shut election between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald J. Trump. Some academics have devoted complete lesson plans this fall to serving to college students higher perceive media literacy and fact-checking.
And plenty of college students have informed us they’ve gained confidence in recognizing falsehoods. We requested greater than 1,000 college students about what suggestions them off {that a} piece of knowledge is likely to be false or deceptive, what’s their strategy to verifying info, and what recommendation they’ve for different youngsters. Right here’s what we heard.
Responses have been edited and condensed for size and readability.
How teenagers know if info is sketchy, made up or manipulated
“If the content material I’m seeing is triggering an excessive emotional response in me — rage, concern or pleasure, to call just a few — with out providing nuanced context, it leads me to assume that it is likely to be designed to mislead. Once I encounter one thing that appears completely sure about morally and politically complicated subjects, such because the Israel-Hamas conflict, with out acknowledging various views or uncertainties, I believe it’s oversimplifying actuality to push an agenda.”
— Sena Chang, 18
Faculty freshman at Princeton College in New Jersey
“Articles that sound sketchy, made up, or manipulated are a pink flag. Some media sources do away with the bits and items of context that make a state of affairs comprehensible. And media shops typically contradict one another. Test and cross-check media. When a real piece of media spreads like wildfire, some media shops will try to get consideration from the state of affairs and find yourself spreading lies concerning the state of affairs. That’s why I discover most articles about fashionable controversies annoyingly eye-rolling.”
— Antonette Davis, 14
Freshman at Central Excessive College in Philadelphia
A single supply doesn’t reduce it for verifying what’s true
“I confirm my info by getting it from a number of sources, not simply folks on-line who’re crediting the unique article I learn. I additionally have a look at the data offered within the article from the attitude of an individual who doesn’t know something concerning the matter and see if the article and the concepts offered nonetheless make sense.”
— Yoni Zacks, 17
Senior on the Blake College in Minneapolis.
“As a rule I look it up on Google and examine it on a extra dependable web site. For instance, if an article makes a declare a couple of piece of laws, I attempt to discover the total textual content of the cited laws to raised perceive what it’s saying.”
— Olivia Garrison, 17
Graduated in 2023 from Davidson Academy in Reno, Nevada
“There’s a device known as Google Reverse Picture Search that I exploit to verify the origins of viral photos or memes to see the place they first appeared and in the event that they’ve been repurposed out of context. Throughout occasions just like the presidential debate, I additionally checked out a number of web sites providing real-time fact-checking like The New York Occasions to assist contextualize what I used to be listening to and establish when what the candidates had been saying was misinformation.”
— Sena Chang
“To confirm info, I attempt to pay attention on to candidates or their campaigns. I discover that is the simplest option to perceive the candidate’s coverage plans, opinions on sure points, and general decorum. Whereas commentary might be useful, it usually contains opinions that make me understand sure issues a sure means. Due to this fact, I discover it vital to instantly hear from a politician first. Afterward, I take heed to and watch video media with commentary. It helps me evaluate my understanding to another person’s and make clear issues I may not have totally understood.”
— Meghan Pierce, 18
Freshman on the College of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in Champaign, Illinois
How younger folks navigate a world of misinformation
“As an adolescent, I get loads of my info from social media. I do know many different youngsters get their info this manner, too, so my phrase of recommendation is to concentrate on the algorithm and the way you’re fed info normally from one facet. You’re not getting the entire story, so do your analysis as an alternative of trusting one supply!”
— Emma Luu, 17
Junior at Pine Creek Excessive College in Colorado Springs, Colorado
“Test something you assume is deceptive with a fast search and cross-check if it’s professional or not.”
— Arnav Goyal, 14
Freshman at Olentangy Liberty Excessive College in Powell, Ohio
“Develop into conscious of media bias, and do your greatest to contemplate completely different views and keep open-minded whereas being conscious of media bias.”
— Lucas Robbins, 17
Senior at Mandela Worldwide Magnet College in Santa Fe, New Mexico
“My (unpopular) take is that fact-checking is simpler than it appears. … Social media serves as an integral egalitarian information supply the place anybody can create and share main supply info regardless of the place they reside on the planet. Nevertheless, utilizing social media as a sole supply of knowledge might be harmful. Typically even recognizing satirical information sources is tough — I’ve been a sufferer of pondering The Onion was an actual information supply. You don’t need to analysis each single headline you ever see. The web might be an overload of knowledge at occasions, and selecting to disconnect is a ability younger folks want. Nevertheless, should you see one thing that raises eyebrows, understanding the context is only a Google search away.”
— Kush Kaur, 17
Freshman at Collin Faculty in McKinney, Texas
Youngsters are inundated every day with a mixture of credible info and faux information. Out of necessity, they’re sharpening their instincts to establish misinformation and constructing expertise to confirm or debunk it. Their recommendation is evident: Keep conscious of algorithmic affect, keep away from counting on a single supply, and keep in mind that it’s OK to step again when all of it feels overwhelming.
Want extra insights? Discover the assets under.
Caroline Bauman is the deputy managing editor for engagement at Chalkbeat. Attain her at cbauman@chalkbeat.org.
Erica Meltzer is the nationwide editor at Chalkbeat, the place she covers schooling coverage and politics. Attain her at emeltzer@chalkbeat.org
