3.5. Clarifying Misunderstandings. Readings

External causes for misunderstandings

Other elements can leave to misunderstandings, such as propaganda, misinformation, and fake news. These terms are used to refer to a range of ways in which sharing information causes harm, intentionally or unintentionally. Although none of these phenomena are new, they have taken on new significance in the past decades with the development of an extensive range of sophisticated forms of information and communication technology.

To give a brief definition of these terms, according to the European Council:

Propaganda is information intentionally crafted and distributed to influence people's way of thinking or behaving, usually in support of a political or ideological agenda. Propaganda can contain factual information, but it is usually one-sided or biased, emphasising certain viewpoints strategically.
Misinformation is wrong information that people who believe it to be true share without the intent to deceive. Misinformation can arise from misunderstandings, rumours or inadequate research.
Fake news is intentionally designed false or exaggerated news to mislead people, create confusion or promote hidden agendas. Fake news is often presented in a way that imitates real news reporting.

All of them can polarize public opinion and even promote violent extremism and hate speech.

As students spend a significant amount of their time watching television, playing online games, chatting, blogging, listening to music, posting photos of themselves and searching for other people with whom to communicate online, they rely heavily on information circulated online for their knowledge of the world and how they perceive reality. Being young people, they are particularly vulnerable to propaganda, misinformation and fake news.

To prevent those situations, it is vital for schools to provide students with a solid education on media and information literacy as part of the curriculum. Teachers must be well-trained in the subject to empower students with the necessary competences to critically understand and assess in formation reported by all forms of media.