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1. Democratic Disorder -
Disinformation, the Media, and
Crisis in a Time of Change
Lance Arnold, Nicholls State University
Andrew Simoncelli, Nicholls State University

2. Purpose of Study
● Create media literacy profile of students to better
educate them.
○ Where do they get their information?
○ How much do they trust the media?
○ How well do they think they can spot fake news?

3. Our Sample Population
● College Students
○ Online learners
○ Some non-traditional
● Regional university in South Louisiana in
Southern U.S.

4. Amendment #1: United States Constitution
Congress shall make no law respecting an
establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free
exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech,
or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably
to assemble, and to petition the government for a
redress of grievances.

5. Media in United States history
● Newspapers- Associated Press- Television-
24 hour news - Internet -Social media
● No official guidelines, but most follow self-
imposed ethics
● Shift to profit over ethics
○ Talk radio and cable news
● Internet and social media

6. Changes in the past 7 years
● 2016 Election and Presidency of Donald Trump
● Changes in immigration policies
● Covid-19
● Black Lives Matter
● Various social changes
● 2020 election and Presidency of Joe Biden
○ January 6, 2021 - Big Lie

7. Social media disinformation
● Free speech vs. private companies
● Facebook and Twitter policies
● Creation of “free speech” media outlets
○ Parler, Truth social media
● Both political parties want changes (differences)
● Disinformation Governance Board
○ Creation and suspension

8. Methodology
● Teaching Media Literacy for 20+ years
● Teaching Media Literacy online for 10+ years
● Virtual discussion forums for online students
● Media Survey for online students

9. Where do young Americans get
their news?
● Internet has become the most widely used source of science
information.
● Journalists as an identifiable source of news is largely irrelevant.
● Peers are more important influencers and providers of news.
● 23% of 15-29 year olds say social media is their only news
source.
● Traditional news stories that require sourcing are increasingly
bypassed.
● 15-29 year olds primarily use smartphones for news.

12. News Finds Me
“Individuals can stay informed about current affairs
despite not purposely following the news, because
important information will “find them” anyway
through their general Internet use, peers, and
connections within online social networks.”
De Zuniga, Weeks, & Aredèvol-Abreu (2017)

13. News Finds Me
● Reuters Institute: Abundance of information online may increase the feeling
that one no longer has to actively seek the news
● Prefer spending their limited budget on entertainment content
● Young adults generally "have exhibited decreasing levels of news usage but
increased consumption of news via social media"
● News comes as part of a social flow, they encounter news incidentally as they
engage with their online networks or community of friends.
● Only 39% say that news is something they actively seek out on their own.
● Recommendations from their peers in their social networks, as well as through
group texts and instant messaging.

14. De Zuniga, H. G., Strauss, N., & Huber, B. (2020)

15. Media Trustworthiness
● Using traditional news sources and non mainstream
news sources are both associated with higher levels
of trust in news
● Using social media as a main source of news is
associated with lower levels of trust in news.
● Among those between 18 and 24 years of age, more
people distrust news than trust it.

17. Gallup Poll (2004)

20. Do not Trust News Most of the Time
● United States- 71%
● France - 70%
● Hungary - 70%
● Slovakia - 70%
● Taiwan - 69%
● South Korea - 68%
● Spain - 64%
● UK - 64%
● Argentina - 64%
● Italy - 60%
● South Africa - 48%
● Ireland - 47%
Trust in Media by Country

24. Fake News
● Mainstream media have to compete with nonprofessionals
claiming to produce news.
● Majority of online news users claim news media companies
should do more to distinguish between fake and real information
online.
● Studies have found that truth cannot compete with hoaxes and
rumors.
● Falsehoods consistently dominate truth on Twitter
● Study finds: Fake news and false rumors reach more people,
penetrate deeper into the social network, and spread much faster
than accurate stories.

25. Fake News
● A false story reaches 1,500 people six times quicker, on average,
than a true story does.
● Fake news about politics regularly does best.
● Falsehoods were 70 percent more likely to get retweeted than
accurate news.
● Labeling fake news as such may do little to deter it.
● Social media seems to systematically amplify falsehood at the
expense of the truth,
● Duffy, A., Tandoc, E., & Ling, R. (2020) found that sharing news that
turns out to be fake might negatively impact relationships.

28. Thoughts
● Recommendations from their peers in their social networks, as
well as through group texts and instant messaging but do not
feel as if their peers can spot fake information. (NFM attitude)
● Trust in media is at an all time low
● Limited tools to stop fake information because of our first
amendment rights.
● Students lack of desire to seek out or properly vet information.

29. Conclusion
16 political scientists and legal scholars. Call for
a new drive of interdisciplinary research “to
reduce the spread of fake news and to address
the underlying pathologies it has revealed.”

30. Conclusion
● As instructors of media literacy we need to give the
students the tools necessary to find valid news
sources, the tools to tell the difference between fake
and real news, and to place trust in media outlets
that have earned and deserve their trust.
● If we do this effectively students may spread less
fake information and may pass on this new skill set
to peers.

31. Questions asked by Media Literate people.
Who created the message?
What are the author’s credentials?
Why was the message created?
Is the message trying to get me to act or think in a certain
way?
Is someone making money for creating this message?
Who is the intended audience?
How do I know this information is accurate?