disinformation

The executive branch of the European Union is asking Facebook, Google, Twitter and others to provide details on how they are responding to disinformation on their platforms.

Calls for racial justice and an end to police brutality still fill social media platforms a year after George Floyd's murder. But Black Lives Matter says posts targeting it are full of disinformation.

There is almost no news alternative to government propaganda on Russian television — save for one channel known as TV Rain. But it only streams on the Web after cable dropped.

The majority of false claims about COVID-19 vaccines on social media trace back to just a handful of influential figures. So why don't the companies just shut them down?

Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega's government insists the country has low numbers of cases and deaths from the pandemic. A grassroots group is working to reveal the true impact is far worse.

As anti-vaccine sentiment spread among ultra-Orthodox Jews, officials waged an aggressive campaign against rumors and hesitancy. Today, 80% of ultra-Orthodox adults over age 30 are vaccinated.

With disinformation spreading on an unprecedented scale, experts in cult deprogramming are turning their focus to those who have fallen down the rabbit hole of conspiracy theories.

While false conspiracies aren't new, experts say their reach is spreading – accelerated by social media, encouraged by former President Trump, and weaponized in a way that is unprecedented.

Political scientists say growing acceptance of unfounded conspiracy theories is fueling disengagement and distrust in democratic institutions, an effect that is trickling down to local politics.

In response to the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, more than 100 evangelical leaders have published a statement calling on other church heads to speak out against Christian nationalism in their ranks.

Some evangelical circles have incubated and spread conspiracy theories for years. It's part of a movement called Christian nationalism that researchers call a threat to American democracy.

The recent attack on the U.S. Capitol is a reminder of the potentially deadly impact of disinformation that is spreading online. Experts say there are several possible strategies for dealing with it.