The press struggles for credibility in the face of info-toxification: new strategies emerge to counter decentralized hoaxes

Abstract

The emergence of search engines and social media networks in the past two decades created a new media ecosystem that allowed the instantaneous creation, distribution, manipulation, and sharing of content to a global audience by anyone with a smartphone and internet access. This ecosystem was ripe for exploitation by actors with aims of profit or propaganda to disrupt society and threaten democratic processes. Their disinformation sowed distrust and undermined the credibility of the press. The dispersed, decentralized nature of this communication has made it hard to police. However, new countermeasures are emerging based on international collaboration on systems for rating trustworthiness of publications and journalists. The technology platforms are collaborating on some of these efforts, but are resisting efforts to have regulators interfere with their business model.