The Shape of Mis- and Disinformation

In recent weeks, Facebook and YouTube have strained to explain why they won't ban Alex Jones' Infowars, which has used its verified accounts to spread false news and dangerous conspiracy theories on the platforms. Meanwhile, the midterms are approaching, and Facebook won't say definitively whether the company has found any efforts by foreign actors to disrupt the elections. Facebook did recently say that it will start to remove misinformation if it may lead to violence, a response to worrisome trends in Myanmar, India, other countries. The social media platforms are being called on to explain how they deal with information that is wrong--a question made even more complicated because the problem takes so many forms. To understand the many forms of misinformation and disinformation on social media, we recently spoke with Claire Wardle, the executive director of First Draft, a nonprofit news-literacy and fact-checking outfit based at Harvard University's Kennedy School, for Slate's tech podcast If Then. We discussed how fake news spreads on different platforms, where it's coming from, and how journalists might think--or rethink--their role in covering it. The interview has been edited and condensed for clarity. Listen to If Then by clicking the arrow on the audio player below, or get the show via Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.