Exploring the effects of location information on perceptions of news credibility and sharing intention

Abstract

In recent years, the integration of location-based services into social media platforms has seen a significant surge, coinciding with the growing challenges posed by the proliferation of fake news online. However, the influence of location data on readers’ perceptions of online news credibility, particularly in relation to the reporters’ whereabouts, remains unclear. To investigate this relationship, we conducted a 3 (Topics: crime, science, health) $\times$ 2 (Location anchor: event-anchored or participant-anchored) $\times$ 4 (Proximity to location anchor - no, same, close-by or faraway location) mixed-method online study (N $=$ 288) on Prolific. Our data collection involved presenting participants with news articles and assessing their credibility assessments and sharing intentions based on the proximity of those disseminating the news to both the subject matter of the news and the audience consuming it. Our findings reveal that the proximity of the reporter’s location to the readers’ location had a noticeable adverse impact on perceptions of news credibility and the likelihood of sharing it. Furthermore, we also identified a weak positive correlation between sharing intentions and trust in social media platforms. In addition, we observed that crime news were generally perceived as less credible compared to health and science news. Our research contributes significantly to a nuanced understanding of how location-based cues impact user behaviour when interacting with online news articles. Furthermore, it provides design insights for social media platforms aiming to enhance user trust and promote pro-social behaviours.