Learning to misinform. A prebunking strategy with newsgames, to foster skills in the Journalism degree

Authors

Abstract

Most attempts to neutralise misinformation in the academic environment aim to refute false reports after the message has reached the recipient (debunking strategies), rather than to promote pre-emptive preparation of the subject (prebunking strategies). In response to this latter modality, the present study aims to counter the risks of uncritical overexposure in social networks with the help of game dynamics. The idea is for young people—especially students of journalism at the University of Valladolid—to learn how to recognise and combat Fake News through simulation techniques. To this end, the game entitled “The Bad News Game” (DROG, 2018) evaluates the results of the game experience using a questionnaire and the content analysis method. The field research confirms that news games promote the acquisition of skills, and shows that future journalists feel just as vulnerable to misinformation as any other group.

Keywords

fake news, informative literacy, newsgames, theory of inoculation, prebunking

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Published

30-06-2022

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