Elections NB is encouraging the public to increase their media literacy, with a provincial election just over a month away.
Chief Electoral Officer Kim Poffenroth says their newly launched campaign will use deliberately ridiculous social media posts – including one saying the Loch Ness monster has been spotted in the Miramichi River – to make the point that not everything online is true.
“Just take that moment to think about what they’re reading before they click on it, like it or share it, and take a moment like I say to think about hmmm is this really true before you perpetuate the story any further,” says Poffenroth.
She adds there are several steps Elections NB recommends taking to ensure you are not taken in by fake news.
Those include verifying the source of a story as a legitimate news organization.
“Is it a legitimat media organization that you’ve heard of before, and then if you’re uncertain from there, try going to the organization’s website,” says Poffenroth. “Things that you can do is check the Contact Us page, does the organization actually have a physical location?”
Poffenroth adds most genuine news organizations do not use gmail or other such email providers, but instead have their own registered system.
She continues, by saying people should check the source, read beyond the headline – as some sources of news are satirical – and search for corroborating sources before sharing news.
More details can be found HERE.
