If finding credible news seems complicated, you are not imagining it. We are being bombarded with misinformation created by humans and AI. And yes, not knowing who and what to trust is incredibly frustrating and disheartening.
However, all hope is not lost, especially if you know what to look for. Rewind the clock to the 1980s at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University, and one of the first things journalism students like me were taught was the importance of adequately attributing all reported information to appropriate sources. Simply put, as journalists, we were not allowed to report information without attributing that information to a verified source.
So what does this look like?
Here is a story attributed adequately from the BBC:
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c30qlr528elo
Note some of the key phrases, such as “according to,” “in a statement,” and “according to police.”
These bits of information are not being offered randomly. Everything reported here is connected to a source. This is an example of what real news looks like.
Here are some other tips to keep in mind:
Beware of “news organizations” you have never heard of.
Real news organizations can face libel and defamation lawsuits for irresponsible reporting. Fake news often does not.
No information should be offered without proper attribution.
These tips should also be applied to what you read on social media. Social content should also be sourced. If you want to make your social media posts more credible, provide the source of the information and a link, if possible. Without it, your post is nothing more than another hot take.
Rich Dubek is a two-time Emmy award-winning TV journalist and the owner of the Dubek Media Group in Tempe, Arizona, specializing in media training, visual storytelling, and crisis communications.