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Events

17.06.2019

10:00 Uhr - 11:30 Uhr | Weizenbaum-Institut, Hardenbergstraße 32, 10623 Berlin, Raum A103 – A105

David Lanius: What fake news is and why we should talk about it

Fake news is ubiquitous in public discourse. While fake news reports are flooding the internet, fake news allegations have become a regular part of many politicians’ rhetorical toolbox. Despite its omnipresence, however, it is anything but clear what fake news is. What do politicians, researchers, and journalists mean when they call something "fake news"?

An adequate and comprehensive definition is called for. In this talk, David Lanius will give a systematic account of fake news that makes the phenomenon tangible, rehabilitates the (academic) use of the term, and helps us to set fake news apart from related phenomena and to identify the problems resulting from the increasing spread of fake news reports in public discourse.