The Power of Related Articles – Improving Fake News Detection on Social Media Platforms

Abstract

Social media is increasingly used as a platform for news consumption, but it has also become a breeding ground for fake news. This serious threat poses significant challenges to social media providers, society, and science. Several studies have investigated automated approaches to fighting fake news, but little has been done to improve fake news detection on the users’ side. A simple but promising approach could be to broaden users' knowledge to improve the perceptual process, which will improve detection behavior. This study evaluates the impact of a digital nudging approach which aims to fight fake news with the help of related articles. 322 participants took part in an online experiment simulating the Facebook Newsfeed. In addition to a control group, three treatment groups were exposed to different combinations of related articles. Results indicate that the presence of controversial related articles has a positive influence on the detection of fake news.