Media has been a very beneficial tool for me during this quarantine process. To start off, media has served to provide me with entertainment. I have had lots of extra time on my hands to watch productions that I have wanted to watch for a long time, such as the film Inception and the T.V. show All American. Binging these productions has given me something to do with all this free time. It is very cool to watch these excellent productions and be able to analyze them by using the skills and information I learned about production this year. Also, I have been able to share my thoughts on these productions with my classmates, as my teacher has held recommended viewings calls where we can discuss media we are watching and recommend it to others.
Additionally, media has served as a tool to keep me connected with the world while still remaining in my home. For example, I have spent a lot of time on social media platforms such as Facebook, Youtube, and Snapchat during my quarantine. I rely on these platforms for news about the pandemic. This is a slippery slope because I have now realized how rampant fake news is on social media. By fake news, I do not mean news that I don't agree with, I mean news that is incorrect and not backed up by reliable sources. Take a look at a few posts from my Facebook feed:
NOTE: In no way do I support or object any topics mentioned in these posts, I am simply using them as an example. I am not making any political statements or expressing my opinion.
NOTE: The channel the video was posted on was not an official news or government channel and was not verified by Youtube.
These posts came up in my feed the other day. The posts are more conspiracy theories than they are news. The websites that they were posted on are not reliable and they do not cite credible sources for the information that they used. During this tough time, it is dangerous to have posts like these circulating the internet. Take the second post as an example. Stating that China deliberately manufactured COVID-19 through its biowarfare program is a very severe claim. Without being properly backed up by credible sources (which it is not), posts like this can be a huge danger to society. It can stimulate xenophobic and racist actions against Asians and can cause major conflict between China and other nations. If this claim is to be made, it must be made carefully, backed up by other sources and completely true.
Fighting Fake News in a Time of Crisis
I was very intrigued when I saw this post a few days ago. I read it and saw that it was filled with very harsh, serious remarks that attack not only certain individuals but whole groups of people too. Once again, there is no reference to any credible source on this post, it was simply an image that was posted by a Facebook user. I checked back today to get this image and I was pleased to find that Facebook actually put a notice on the post warning users that it was deemed to be false by independent fact-checkers. It is important to warn users when a post is false because some people do not realize that it is untrue. This could lead to more people believing "facts" that that really aren't even facts after all.
My Newsfeed
After realizing the dangers of misinformation and fake news, I have started to pay close attention to the sources I get my news from. I watch a lot of Snapchat Discover stories that are under the coronavirus news page. Here, I can find credible, engaging news videos from official sources. I believe that this is the safest way to consume news during this time because misinformation can be very damaging. News sources like Snapchat discovered have allowed me to remain connected to the outside world while I am stuck in my home.
Stay tuned for the final draft of my film opening coming this week!
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