Misinformation vs disinformation: what’s the difference?
We live in the ‘information age’, where news, opinion, entertainment and user-generated content is everywhere online – and easily accessible. While this has many benefits, it also presents problems.
We’ve all read, seen, heard and – most probably – believed something online which later turned out to be untrue. In fact, according to a report by Ofcom, just over six in ten social media users who said they were “confident” in judging whether online content is true or false “lacked the skills to do so”.
The term ‘fake news’ is much-used – but things are a little more complicated than that. To be confident in the content we consume online, it’s important to understand what ‘misinformation’ and ‘disinformation’ are – and to recognise the important differences between them.
Misinformation
‘Misinformation’ is simply incorrect information. At its core, it’s any content which happens to accidentally misinform us.
It can be natural for people to get things wrong. News outlets and journalists might misquote somebody, individuals might share footage labelled as a ‘2024 event’ which is actually from 2007, and stats can be skewed by incorrect calculations.
Equally, our understanding of issues evolve over time. Scientific fields are constantly shifting as theories and equipment develop, and history books are edited or rewritten as our knowledge of the past increases. These are all examples of misinformation.
We’re all occasionally prone to making mistakes and believing false things – especially when sources look legitimate. As a result, sharing misinformation (and being misinformed ourselves) is at times an unavoidable fact of life.
Disinformation
While misinformation happens accidentally, ‘disinformation’ occurs when there is a deliberate intention to deceive.
Disinformation can also come from a variety of sources and in many forms. For example: deceptive clickbait headlines, biased reviews, cropped or altered images, and conspiracy theories.
The individuals who share disinformation may rely on things like legitimate-sounding organisations, edited imagery and video, and specific audience-targeting to manipulate what you think, feel or believe to be true.
Similar to misinformation, human history is peppered with instances of disinformation. From made-up political scandals in ancient Rome to Victorian ‘quack’ medicines, the desire to get people believing false things has long existed. In the modern information age, however, the capacity for disinformation to spread has increased significantly through social media.
The internet, despite the enormous social and practical benefits, allows people to share false information rapidly and to wider audiences, often whilst appearing credible.
It can be helpful to pause and question if the things you watch, read and listen to online may be motivated to deliberately deceive or mislead you.
What’s important for parents to know?
Even if misinformation and disinformation are sadly unavoidable, all of us can – and should be – proactive in limiting the influence of both by developing our media literacy.
Being able to understand and recognise the various forms of misinformation and disinformation is not only an important skill, it’s one that takes practice and time to develop.
To help children with this process they should be encouraged to think critically and to question the things they see online, to search safely for trustworthy sources, and to appreciate how even peer pressure can help the spread of both misinformation and disinformation.
It’s equally important to consider the repercussions might be of sharing things online. For instance, whether it’s intentional or not, sharing false content can at times amount to behaviours like cyberbullying.
Ultimately, mis- and disinformation will be an ongoing part of our online lives, so the best thing a parent can do is help their child develop the skills to recognise and know how to respond.