As the elections draw nearer, it is essential to reevaluate where we get our primary information from. According to Pew Research, “more than half of Americans turn towards social media as their primary source for the day-to-day news”. Although social media is a quick and easy outlet to use, there are ways to filter the information you access to ensure that you are only reading credible information. Lisa Kaplan, the founder of the Aletha Group, provides a few helpful tips in which she helps control false information for candidate’s campaigns. Read below to learn ways to filter your social media feed during upcoming elections.
- Manipulate your Feed
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Pay close attention to the retargeted ads that appear on your feed. Algorithms gather data from the posts hashtags that you engage with. These formulas are created to suggest similar websites or information based on your views. To avoid reading-related opinions from the same publisher, Kaplan suggests deviating from your go-to outlets. For example, if you are accustomed to getting your news from The New York Times, try to read what The Wall Street Journal has to say. This will allow your algorithm to promote news articles from various sources and ultimately give you multiple opinions.
- “Treat It Like a Newspaper”
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Reading digital articles is no different than reading a newspaper. Kaplan informs us that we need to treat our digital media the same that we would with a newspaper. She stresses the importance of critical reading.
Make sure to research the writer of the article. Are they credible? Are they well-known? Is this author known to report false information?
Make sure that the article you are reading is relevant. When was this article written? Is it current? - Reflect
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It is very easy to retweet a headline and even easier to share a popular tweet. Kaplan emphasizes this idea by saying that a popular tweet does not equate to accurate information. Without fail, the most interesting headlines are often the ones that seem bizarre; it is those that often get the most engagements. These articles are usually written without foundation and cannot be trusted. Kaplan reminds us that many pieces are not fact-checked, and it is your job to do your research.
Lisa Kaplan certainly has a more extensive list of ways to filter your social media, yet Kaplan realizes that the three methods listed above are the best ways to do so. She hopes that her audiences will practice the techniques to make wiser choices when using social media for their news.