Social Work

The fingerprints of misinformation: how deceptive content differs from reliable sources in terms of cognitive effort and appeal to emotions

C. Carrasco-farré

This exciting research conducted by Carlos Carrasco-Farré examines the intriguing differences between misinformation and factual news across a vast collection of articles. Discover how misinformation captivates with its emotional appeal and simplicity, shedding light on the importance of understanding its varied characteristics.

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Playback language: English

Index

Abstract

This paper explores the characteristics of misinformation content compared to factual news, analyzing 92,112 news articles across seven categories: clickbait, conspiracy theories, fake news, hate speech, junk science, rumors, and factual news. Misinformation was found to be, on average, easier to process cognitively (simpler grammar and less lexically diverse) and more emotionally evocative (more negative sentiment and stronger appeal to morality) than factual news. The study highlights the need for more nuanced research into misinformation, as its characteristics vary significantly across categories.

Publisher

Humanities & Social Sciences Communications

Published On

May 09, 2022

Authors

Carlos Carrasco-Farré

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-022-01174-9

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