What is news? - 23 Jan 2017

It has never been more important that in this age of unfettered information flows and unrestrained social media, to maintain a healthy scepticism when confronted with news that evokes a strong emotion. In this era of fake news, it is not only up to the media to filter the facts from the nonsense and offer up stories to inform and entertain us; but it is also up to every individual to take the time to evaluate the source of content, including pictures, before sharing or reacting.
What makes it extremely difficult to spot fake news is that often the URLs or social media handles are very similar to the original source - often mainstream, well-known media sources. So it is easy to be duped.
But it is the responsibility of each one of us to join the frontline to stop the spread of fake news and to educate ourselves as to how to spot the telling signs of fake news.

Have a great week!
Louise Marsland
Africa Editor: Bizcommunity.com