Core mechanics of disinformation

Fact or Fake? How Users Evaluate Information

Stage 1 — The user determines if the content is interesting

Stage 2 — The user checks the information source

Stage 3 — Attention to details: presentation style and time of publication

Stage 4 — The user compares it with their own experience

Stage 5 — The user decides whether the news is credible

There are three criteria for determining whether news is fake or reliable: emotions, quality of presentation, and level of trust in the information source.

Mechanics and methods of disinformation

• Fabrication and forgery – fake documents, manipulation of audio/video materials, copies of media and government websites, photoshop and deepfakes.
• Clickbait – provocative and manipulative techniques in digital environment aimed at attracting attention and generating traffic.
• False conclusions – distortion of context, incorrect use of visual materials, violation of logical connections, manipulation of facts.
• Pseudoscience and conspiracy theories – denial of scientific/objective data.
• Framing and one-sided presentation – highlighting an event or topic from a specific angle, which may lead to different interpretations or evaluations of what happened.
• False attribution – attributing statements and declarations to speakers and organizations that they didn’t make, with the aim of increasing the statement’s authority.
• Repetition of false theses – a canonical propaganda technique where an idea, especially a simple slogan repeated enough times, may be perceived as truth.