Okay, I admit it. I lied. That was totally clickbait. Fake news isn’t banned — and neither was TikTok, apparently. Conspiracies are spreading like wildfire (and about it, too). And now, with tech titans joining forces, we’ve all been left thinking: what could be more Meta than misinformation about misinformation?

Now, before we get ahead of ourselves, let’s start by setting a few things straight. 

First off, fake news isn’t new. Misinformation, along with its conniving counterpart, disinformation, has been around forever, enabled by a slew of bad actors who, unfortunately, know exactly how to play their part.

Second, AI isn’t to blame — at least, not the way we’re blaming it now. Although LLMs generate misinformation faster and more convincingly than ever, they are ultimately tools, not traitors. And the way we humans respond? That remains the same. (Nothing screams “System 1” like impulse sharing.)

Third, neither side is solely responsible. We can all (hopefully) get behind the fact that fake news is one of the most politically polarizing issues out there, making it feel impossible to have a conversation across the aisle. However, making progress means staying level-headed while discussing biases — and recognizing our own, too.

So, rather than pointing fingers at the robots or each other, let’s take a step back and figure out how we, as a species, can win the war on misinformation.

Until next time,
Gabrielle and the healthy skeptics at TDL