Thesis Statement

Fake news is a form of information that undermines the central goal of journalism: to accurately inform the reader. Facebook, one of the most popular social media platforms, has come under scrutiny in the last three years for being a conduit for fake news, stories related to current events that are intentionally skewed and misrepresented by authors without any indication of untruth. While this epidemic of false information may not be an intentional move on the part of Facebook as a nonpartisan platform that seeks to serve all its users equally, the company has come under fire for allowing such false information to be posted and shared by its users, which further propagates incorrect interpretations of events that have been factually confirmed by other reputable sources. Fake news is a phenomenon that is more damaging than a simple internet prank. Regardless of who posts false information under the guise of journalistic confirmation, and regardless of their reasons, the consequences have had far-reaching effects in reality thus far, and this trend will likely continue in the near future.