SOCIAL MEDIA, DISINFORMATION/MISINFORMATION, MENTAL HEALTH AND THE SOCIETY
While misinformation is the unintentional spreading of false or inaccurate information, disinformation is spreading false information which is deliberately intended to mislead.
Misinformation and disinformation are often persuasive and are written to create shock or to impress the reader. This is why developing a critical mindset is essential to keep your emotional response to such stories in check.
The advent of advanced technology and digital infrastructure have also inadvertently seen a prevalence of misinformed views, falsehoods and skewed facts often misleading and sometimes insufficient whether the information is about politics, health, science etc.
People are eager to disseminate misinformation/disinformation when the story aligns with their personality or social values; when it is unconventional, elicits strong emotions or simply serves their interests.
Information spreads faster on social media than on mainstream news outlets because several unique features of social media encourage viral content which can either be true or filled with errors.
Speedy publication and information sharing allow users to distribute information quickly to large audiences, unchecked.
Also, people can share information that gets recognition and approval from others.
These factors and more can give rise to a spike in misinformation/disinformation which pose serious risks for the society. For instance, the duo has been identified as major contributors to various contentious contemporary issues:
Belief in both misinformation and disinformation can lead to poor judgements and poor decision-making which can have disastrous personal, societal, national or global implications. A clear example is false census data collected for political, religious or other purposes which are used to plan for National development and project distribution or false election results and the lasting implication on Nations across the world. Truth is that the spread of misinformation and disinformation has affected our ability to improve public health, address climate change, maintain a stable democracy and more because long after erroneous beliefs have been corrected, manipulated narratives can exert lingering influence on people's reasoning because of its influence on memory and decision making.
This gives rise to inevitable challenge for social interaction among families, groups, nations and so on.
The most underrated havoc of this menace is its effect on our individual and collective mental health because misinformation and disinformation often explore negative emotions such as fear, anger, or distrust; to manipulate individuals into believing false or misleading information, having the potential to polarise public opinion, promote violent extremism and hate speech.
Young persons are particularly more vulnerable to misinformation as they spend a significant amount of their time on social media and surfing the Internet. They rely heavily on information circulated online which in turn helps form their opinion and how they perceive reality. Most times, social media is false reality having no relationship with truth.
The Mental health of most young people has thus been affected without them even being aware of it.
Correct information is characterized by its accuracy, verifiability, brevity, balance and truthfulness.Any information devoid of these is misinformation/disinformation.
In addressing the challenges posed by disinformation, we should always offer accurate and fact-based information to counter disinformation.
Where possible, provide reviewed citations and offer credible and well-known sources to support and promote accuracy.
Instead of immediately reporting information, document it by saving web links, taking screenshots, and tracking engagements over time.
Filter through news by thinking critically about the information, assessing how reliable the source is, fact-checking and researching.
This way, you will be able to use your discretion to decide whether you’re going to believe the information being fed to you.
NGOZIKA HILDA MBAH (Broadcast Journalist)
#treasureyourmentalhealth