Information Credibility and Digital Media Literacy: A Media Fraternity Perspective
Keywords:
Disinformation, Credibility of Information, Social Media, Digital Media Literacy, Fake NewsAbstract
Mainstream media is traditionally an important source of information and is believed to provide credible, timely, and valuable information. However, social media popularity is increasing with every passing day for information gathering, sharing, and socializing. Resultantly an average user is continually exposed to a huge amount of unverified social media content, which ultimately distract people and can cause great loss to the recipients. This situation raises the challenge of information credibility on social media compared to other sources of information gathering. The purpose of this study has been to explore how people particularly media professionals assess the issues of disinformation and credibility on social media and how these features can be handled appropriately to bring harmony and tranquility in the society. Semi‐structured interviews of 15 media professionals including senior working journalists, media managers, academicians in media studies and digital media experts were conducted. Qualitative data from media experts’ interviews was obtained to understand the issues associated with the credibility of information on social media. Purposive sampling technique was used to approach more relevant respondents having rich information on the subject matter. It has come to light that the identification of credible information requires an understanding of digital content with special emphasis on its objectivity, authority, and purpose in addition to functional and critical digital skills.
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Copyright (c) 2024 Muhammad Sohaib Subhani, `Dr. Muhammad Irfan, Dr. Shahid Hussain
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