Overcoming the Challenge of Fake News

Abstract

The advent of the Internet and the Information Age was initially hailed as ushering in a new era of transparency and interconnectivity in binding the world closer together. Yet, the Information Age has also brought a proliferation in the phenomenon known as fake news, a trend that is set to continue for the foreseeable future. In this, the potential impact of fake news on international relations should not be underestimated, particularly given the extent to which the phenomenon has been exploited by various entities, from political ideologues and political partisans to government espionage agencies, to skew the media narrative. This article will examine what fake news is and the challenge that it poses to civil society, before moving on to discuss the various types of fake news that have begun to emerge in recent years. Based on this discussion of the threats posed by the fake news phenomenon, this article will conclude by examining how educators, civil society and other stakeholders may respond to the challenges posed by fake news.