In today’s digital landscape, we are constantly exposed to a stream of news, social media posts, and AI-generated content that creates a challenge: how do we help children and young people evaluate what’s credible or true versus opinion-based, misleading, manipulative, or outright false information?
This extends beyond identifying negative influences from online personalities (such as those that Gareth Southgate recently criticised in his Dimbleby lecture for not having “the best interests of our children at heart”). It also affects basic everyday learning about history, science, social issues and current events – knowledge that previous generations would have gained from vetted academic sources and textbooks.
The core challenge lies in developing critical thinking skills. But how do we help children with this when so much of this ability to evaluate is supported by life experience and knowledge that they haven’t acquired yet? This article explores practical strategies for parents to help children navigate information overload.
What is Fake News?
Even experienced journalists and broadcasters can make mistakes, but real ‘fake news’ goes beyond a simple error in judgement. What we really mean is information deliberately fabricated to mislead readers, typically to push a particular political agenda or influence public opinion. It can manifest in several ways:
- Intentionally false stories with no basis in fact.
- Misleading headlines that are designed to grab attention but don’t reflect the true details of the article.
- Propaganda, especially information that is biased, for example towards cultural groups, using partial truths or playing on people’s emotions.
Characteristics of these types of stories could include:
- Lack of credible sources – who provided their “facts” and what are their credentials? Could they have motivations other than the public good?
- Emotional rather than factual language – such as implying your safety is at risk, or something is to blame for your life situation.
- Using unusual or suspicious URLs – how do you know you can trust this source?
- Making extreme or sensational claims – does their claim seem oversimplified? Could there be exceptions or evidence to the contrary?
Steps for Spotting a Fake News Story
- Source Verification
- If it’s on a website, is it an established and respected publisher?
- Have they provided a link to their sources of information?
- Is there any indication that the article is “sponsored content”, indicating the author is receiving payment for the broadcast?
- Is the article or video presenting factual news, or could it be an opinion, such as in the format of an interview, social media post or YouTube video?
- Cross-Referencing Information
- Check multiple sources – Are the facts they have stated repeated elsewhere, i.e. in other established news sources?
- Using fact-checking websites – Internet Matters has a very useful guide on this.
- Comparing information across different reliable platforms – don’t just rely on social media or a single news channel.
- Have a healthy skepticism – see if you can find a different viewpoint which might challenge the facts of the original story.
- Understanding that there is “media bias” – even established sources like news channels may promote political agendas, particularly if they are closely linked to a political leader or government.
- Recognising Red Flags
- Sensationalist headlines
- Lack of author credentials
- No citations or references
- Emotional language
- Poor grammar and spelling
How Can Parents Help?
- Help children find and use fact-checking websites.
- Have open conversations about current news stories and issues they’ve encountered online and what they think about them.
- Encourage them to think critically – what sources of information do they like to follow and why? What do they think motivates those sources?
- Talk to them about the potential consequences of sharing misinformation.
Additional Resources
- Internet Matters advice hub – https://www.internetmatters.org/issues/fake-news-and-misinformation-advice-hub/
- BBC fake news quiz – https://www.bbc.co.uk/cbbc/quizzes/real-or-fake-news-quiz
- CBC Kids (Canada) fake news quiz – https://www.cbc.ca/kids/quizzes/fact-or-fake-can-you-tell-the-difference-online
- Childnet – https://www.childnet.com/resources/reliability-online/
We all have to continuously learn and adapt as the digital landscape evolves, but we can support the next generation by using these strategies and resources in our everyday lives online.
