Reports Critical Developments

Fake News 2017 Social Media’s Coming of Age

Zach Fuller
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20,000 Foot View:  By reaching the apex of cultural ubiquity, social media is being forced to answer questions it never imagined it would need to. Zuckerberg, Dorsey and Co.’s original missions could not have comprehended the way in which their communications tools would construct world-views. But when your service becomes a window into the wider society that has, for many, superseded news websites themselves, the weight of responsibility arrives on your shoulders. Fake news went mainstream in 2016 and was the subject of endless think pieces over how to address the matter without encroaching on the sensitive issue of censorship. Because these sites are not beholden to the same regulatory standards as other news outlets – stories ranging from the gross to the fantastical permeate the glowing news feeds of smartphone users globally.

Key Findings:

  • Only            of            users subscribe to multiple paid            services across Online Video, Music            News.
  •            consumption of new media (Vice, Buzzfeed) is            higher than average news consumption in the same demographic
  • Paid digital            subscriptions            for the FT,            for            New York Times), pale in            to the            Daily Active Users            Facebook. 
  • Major news            have seen a steep decline            the sharing of their content            Facebook
  •            of Buzz Feed and Vice users are aged under            while            of traditional online news users are aged over           
  • Algorithm’s in            media’s make-up creates ‘filter bubbles’            limits perception of the wider            cycle
  • Sharing articles            social media as an expression            values leads to niche and            sites gaining traction
  • The present            framework for online publishing encourages            news
  • The multi-platform            blurs the distinction between parody            satire Companies Mentioned: BBC, BuzzFeed,            Financial Times, Google, Outbrain, The            York Times, The Guardian Group,            Twitter, Vice