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Misinformation and Media Literacy: Categories of Misinformation

Melissa Zimdars' Four Categories of Misinformation

Misinformation, or "fake news," doesn't always exist in the realm of either/or, black-and-white. 

There are four broad categories of fake news, according to media professor Melissa Zimdars of Merrimack College.

Click each CATEGORY for further detail. 

Fake, false, or regularly misleading websites that are shared on Facebook and social media. Some of these websites may rely on “outrage” by using distorted headlines and decontextualized or dubious information in order to generate likes, shares, and profits.
Websites that may circulate misleading and/or potentially unreliable information
Websites that sometimes use clickbait-y headlines and social media descriptions
Satire/comedy sites, which can offer important critical commentary on politics and society, but have the potential to be shared as actual/literal news

No single topic falls under a single category - for example, false or misleading medical news may be entirely fabricated (Category 1), may intentionally misinterpret facts or misrepresent data (Category 2), may be accurate or partially accurate but use an alarmist title to get your attention (Category 3) or may be a critique on modern medical practice (Category 4.)  Some articles fall under more than one category.  Assessing the quality of the content is crucial to understanding whether what you are viewing is true or not. It is up to you to do the legwork to make sure your information is good.

MIS- vs. DIS- vs. MAL-information

Verstraete's, D. Bambauer's and J. Bambauer's Four Quadrants

Verstraete, Bambauer and Bambauer take a slightly different, but very similar, approach to Zimdars.  


From https://www.rcmediafreedom.eu/Publications/Academic-sources/Identifying-and-Countering-Fake-News

  • satire: purposefully false content, financially motivated, not intended to deceive readers
  • hoax: purposefully false content, financially motivated, intended to deceive readers
  • propaganda: purposefully biased or false content, motivated by an attempt to promote a political cause or point of view, intended to deceive the reader
  • trolling: biased or fake content, motivated by an attempt to get personal humor value (the lulz), intended to deceive the reader
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