CHAPTER VI - THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DISINFORMATION AND DIGITAL LITERACY IN COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES: A STUDY ON DIGITAL MEDIA
Semih SALMAN
Cite this chapter
APA
Salman, S. (2024). Chapter VI The Relationship Between Disinformation and Digital Literacy in Communication Strategies: A Study on Digital Media. In P. Özgökbel Bilis, A. E. Bilis, and K. C. Baykal (Eds.), Rethinking Media in Light of Current Discussions and Trends (pp. 141–169). Ankara, Türkiye: Global Academy Publishing House. https://dx.doi.org/10.59740/academy.73
Introduction
The effects of disinformation on society can be severe. Making decisions based on false information, the erosion of public trust, and the damage to democratic processes are the main problems caused by disinformation. With the widespread use of digital and social media platforms, the rapid spread of false information to large audiences exacerbates these issues. According to Pennycook and Rand (2019: 390), ordinary people are not adequately equipped to assess the reliability of news sources. Studies show that people incorrectly judge 40% of legitimate news stories as false and 20% of fake news stories as true. According to these authors, if ordinary people cannot effectively determine the quality of individual news stories, they may also fail to assess the quality of news sources. Indeed, ensuring access to accurate information sources and improving digital literacy are critical to mitigating the negative impacts of disinformation. In this context, increasing individual and societal awareness in the fight against disinformation will contribute to the formation of a healthier and more reliable information environment.
Digital literacy refers to individuals' competence to evaluate the information they encounter on digital platforms critically. This competence includes distinguishing reliable sources of information and recognizing disinformation. Digital literacy makes younger generations more resilient to disinformation by making them aware of accessing and managing information. To prevent the spread of disinformation and ensure the flow of reliable information in society, digital platforms and media organizations need to increase their responsibilities. The algorithms that highlight content based on users' interests can accelerate the spread of false information. Therefore, media literacy and digital literacy programs are critical for both individuals and communities to combat disinformation. Additionally, media regulators and fact-checking organizations must implement stricter oversight and accuracy checks to prevent the spread of false information.
This study aims to examine the structure of disinformation spread through digital media on political issues and discuss the importance of developing digital literacy skills in this context. One year has been selected to evaluate the findings obtained from the analysis conducted within the study consistently. Since a process that spans from the past to the present will be considered, July 24, 2024, has been set as the end date for the analysis. There are fact-checking organizations in Turkey that verify news and content shared on digital media. On July 24, 2024, the Twitter social media accounts of these platforms were examined, and Teyit.org was found to be the fact-checking platform with the most followers. Considering that false information and disinformation spread especially via Twitter, the number of followers on this platform was taken into account. On the Teyit.org fact-checking platform, the news investigated was categorized, and it was found that the category with the highest number of verified news items was Politics. The study will examine the relationship between digital literacy and disinformation, and the analysis results of the news investigated within the framework of the Teyit.org platform will be evaluated, examining the role of digital media at this stage.