Who Believes in Fake News? Identification of Political (A)Symmetries
Political fake news continues to be a threat to contemporary societies, negatively affecting public and democratic institutions. The literature has identified political bias as one of the main predictors of belief and spread of fake news. However, the academic debate has not been consensual regardin...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-10-01
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| Series: | Social Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/11/10/460 |
| _version_ | 1827647987766001664 |
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| author | João Pedro Baptista Anabela Gradim |
| author_facet | João Pedro Baptista Anabela Gradim |
| author_sort | João Pedro Baptista |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Political fake news continues to be a threat to contemporary societies, negatively affecting public and democratic institutions. The literature has identified political bias as one of the main predictors of belief and spread of fake news. However, the academic debate has not been consensual regarding the effect of political identity on the discernment of fake news. This systematic literature review (2017–2021) seeks to understand whether there is consistent evidence that one political identity may be more vulnerable to fake news than others. Focusing the analysis on European and North American (United States) studies, we used Scopus and Web of Science databases to examine the literature. Our findings revealed that most studies are consistent in identifying the conservative or right-wing audience as more vulnerable to fake news. Although there seems to be a motivated political reasoning for both sides, left-wing people or liberals were not, in any analyzed study, associated with a greater propensity to believe in political fake news. Motivated reasoning seems stronger and more active among conservatives, both in the United States and Europe. Our study reinforces the need to intensify the fight against the proliferation of fake news among the most conservative, populist, and radical right audience. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T19:30:07Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d07a195bf9a049f783d8c42ec7ffd60f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-0760 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T19:30:07Z |
| publishDate | 2022-10-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Social Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-d07a195bf9a049f783d8c42ec7ffd60f2023-11-24T02:34:13ZengMDPI AGSocial Sciences2076-07602022-10-01111046010.3390/socsci11100460Who Believes in Fake News? Identification of Political (A)SymmetriesJoão Pedro Baptista0Anabela Gradim1Department of Letters, Arts and Communication, University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD), 5000-801 Vila Real, PortugalLabcom.IFP–Communication and Arts, University of Beira Interior (UBI), 6201-001 Covilhã, PortugalPolitical fake news continues to be a threat to contemporary societies, negatively affecting public and democratic institutions. The literature has identified political bias as one of the main predictors of belief and spread of fake news. However, the academic debate has not been consensual regarding the effect of political identity on the discernment of fake news. This systematic literature review (2017–2021) seeks to understand whether there is consistent evidence that one political identity may be more vulnerable to fake news than others. Focusing the analysis on European and North American (United States) studies, we used Scopus and Web of Science databases to examine the literature. Our findings revealed that most studies are consistent in identifying the conservative or right-wing audience as more vulnerable to fake news. Although there seems to be a motivated political reasoning for both sides, left-wing people or liberals were not, in any analyzed study, associated with a greater propensity to believe in political fake news. Motivated reasoning seems stronger and more active among conservatives, both in the United States and Europe. Our study reinforces the need to intensify the fight against the proliferation of fake news among the most conservative, populist, and radical right audience.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/11/10/460fake newsdisinformationpolitical ideologypolitical bias |
| spellingShingle | João Pedro Baptista Anabela Gradim Who Believes in Fake News? Identification of Political (A)Symmetries Social Sciences fake news disinformation political ideology political bias |
| title | Who Believes in Fake News? Identification of Political (A)Symmetries |
| title_full | Who Believes in Fake News? Identification of Political (A)Symmetries |
| title_fullStr | Who Believes in Fake News? Identification of Political (A)Symmetries |
| title_full_unstemmed | Who Believes in Fake News? Identification of Political (A)Symmetries |
| title_short | Who Believes in Fake News? Identification of Political (A)Symmetries |
| title_sort | who believes in fake news identification of political a symmetries |
| topic | fake news disinformation political ideology political bias |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/11/10/460 |
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