Kolina Koltai, a postdoctoral scholar at the Center for an Informed Public, published an article in The Conversation that outlines how individuals can avoid fueling the spread of misinformation online during the election.
Kolina Koltai, postdoctoral scholar at the Center for an Informed Public
Koltai encourages using the Stop, Investigate, Find, and Trace (SIFT) technique which was developed by Washington State University’s Michael Caulfield, who regularly collaorates with the CIP. “Following this technique, when you encounter something you want to share online, you can stop and check to see if you know the website or source of the information,” Koltai writes. “Then investigate the source and find out where the story is coming from. Then find trusted coverage to see if there is a consensus among media sources about the claim. Finally, trace claims, quotes and media back to their original contexts to see if things were taken out of context or manipulated.”
According to Koltai, sharing positive voting experiences on social media may also be an effective way to encourage confidence in the election process and combat potential attempts to suppress voter turnout.
