This short film, first published in 2020, is for teachers and review is recommended before use in class.
The BBC defines fake news as:
- false information distributed deliberately, usually for political or commercial purposes
But for others fake news has become a catch all term to dismiss a story, claim or news report.
In this video BBC editors and journalists:
- look at different types of fake news and false and inaccurate information
- explain some of the reasons why these stories are made and spread
For schools wanting more information about the types of fake and false information go to our lesson plan.
Knowing who to trust. video
In this video you'll hear from Amol Rajan, the BBC’s media editor, journalist Mukul Devichand and Rachel Schraer from BBC Reality Check.
Checking the story. video
In this video you will hear from BBC journalists Natalie Miller, Alex Murray and Rachel Schraer from BBC Reality Check.
Numbers and the tricks they play. video
When you’re looking at news stories remember that it’s not just the words you need to take notice of but the numbers too.
Lesson 1: Real versus fake news. video
This lesson will give you a broad understanding of the term ‘fake news’ and the skills and techniques to distinguish between what’s false or fake and what’s real.
Lesson 2: Sources and who to trust. video
This lesson plan will give you an understanding of the importance and use of sources and ways to identify which ones are reliable and trustworthy and why it’s recommended to use more than one.
Lesson 3: Social media, images and data. video
This lesson will demonstrate how to spot whether a social media feed is genuine or fake, to consider the manipulation of images and think carefully about how the addition of numbers to a story may not be a clear as it first seems.
