Misinformation and YouTube

Bibliography

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Script & Further Reading

Hbomberguy

Hbomberguy released a video about Plagiarism on YouTube early December 2023.

"You can spend ages..." 4:08 - 4:23 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

He said

"Filips review was made..." 7:34 - 7:47[1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

But that's it. That is the only source in an almost 4 hour long video about plagiarism linked in the description.

He links his second channel video, which only links the main channel one,

and lists other creators with other content but no source doc.

However, I think it was a deliberate decision.

He has used source docs in the past (ROBLOX_OOF example)

and said

"but in this new definition ..."1:18:38 - 1:18:48 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

something mirrored by many other creators, for example

"I'm going to reference a paper here..." 27:33 - 27:57[2] munecat (2022) I Debunked Every "Body Language Expert" on YouTube

Which makes me think he hasn't done one because he doesn't think anyone will read it.

he does say that

"I have a little rule..."48:14 - 48:24 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

and I am not saying a source doc is needed

But he doesn't expand, I know it is a lot of effort but there are other things that I think should be sourced.

One person responding to the Hbomberguy video said

"That only gets me a part of the way there..." 25:15 - 25:41[3] Council of Geeks (2023) What James Somerton can teach us

and Hbomberguy even points out examples of screen shot editing in his video

"you see this graphic..." 1:39:29 - 1:39:43 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

Past tweets or x posts can be hard to find but easy to photoshop.

A link may lead to a 'does not exist anymore page' but then we know it was deleted or changed in some way.

Or not linked properly.

Maybe a bit nitpicky but.

When words were put over a different video for contrast I don't see a source.

"Movie opens with a shadow figure..." 34:26 - 34:50 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

Yes I found the article and video from previous explanations but he doesn't quite follow his own rule

"'if someone saw..." 48:14 - 48:24 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

I like the graph in this but I don't know where it comes from.

"On October 10th..." 15:10 - 15:21 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

I would guess social blade because I have seen people use that tool before but I don't know

With this snippet here

"But that's not the only thing..." 16:20 - 16:48 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube) here

I found the articles easily enough from the screen recording but the video, I can't seem to find.

Here he plays a video from apology number 3

"The explanation lies in..." 22:52 - 23:10 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

But how do I know that was number 3, or even an apology video without a screen source or a source doc.

At the moment YouTube search makes them easy to find but what if it isn't so simple.

Now there are screen sources in the video

"Obviously I have to see..." 40:42 - 40:50 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

But titles of things get changed making articles and videos difficult to find.

Especially on YouTube channels with hundreds of videos to sift through.

And when the on screen source is taken away I don't know if it is a different video or a different part of the same video.

He makes me make an assumption.

Which I will expand on later.

Yes I am one of the weird people that read source docs and looks for original sources.

I am not saying Hbomberguy has made this up, or faked any of the research.

Just to be clear, I am not saying Hbomberguy faked anything, but he could have.

He says towards the end of the video

"Simply being able to talk about..." 3:39:52 - 3:40:09 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

I think he has done all we can do, in past videos.

I assume the comment about people not reading source docs is his reason not to have one in this video

someone could, even with on screen sources and a source doc say it was fake but I don't think the claim is likely to stick

so I personally would have liked a source doc.

and for me I would suggest maybe leading by example, especially following a critique like this.

Good source practice

6:55

I think good practice is to show sources on screen, link sources somewhere

and for complex discussion topics explain where the thinking comes from in some way.

however practically sourcing is a bit all over the place right now on YouTube but

"Academia's pretty picky..." 2:29 - 2:41 [4] Cass Eris (2023) Citation Needed for You(Tube)? - How to not be a plagiarist

we don't need academic formats,

certainly not the amount of variation in formats. zotero cite recording

"OK, we need to talk..." 47:30 - 48:05 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

Some creators show URL links on screen
[5] Todd in the Shadows (2023) I Fact-Check The Worst Video Essayist On YouTube

But then there is documentation

"Documentation is putting..." 3:18 - 3:50 [4] Cass Eris (2023) Citation Needed for You(Tube)? - How to not be a plagiarist

so apart from URL's on screen being a bit inconvenient, links can break or change so authors or titles could help that.

some other arguments for putting sources on screen

"First it allows people..." 16:20 - 16:38 [4] Cass Eris (2023) Citation Needed for You(Tube)? - How to not be a plagiarist

"Second the citation being pa rt..." 17:53 - 18:00 [4] Cass Eris (2023) Citation Needed for You(Tube)? - How to not be a plagiarist

"The final advantage..." 18:38 - 19:10 [4] Cass Eris (2023) Citation Needed for You(Tube)? - How to not be a plagiarist

Some creators use bibliographies. Authors, title and links in the video description [10] Veritasium (2024) Do People Understand the Scale of the Universe?

Much easier to find sources, but I don't know where the source is relevant in the video unless said,

and the description is capped at 5000 characters so some sources might be missed to reduce the list.

You could use the pinned comment which has a 10000 character limit but still no screen reference.

Others use linked pages solving the source limit issue but still lacking on screen reference points. [11] Johnny Harris (2024) How Benjamin Netanyahu Relies on Hamas

So combine those things together.

On screen reference to a bibliography linked somewhere that has an author, title and link. [12] Educational Science (2024) New PISA Report: The state of education

Others go even further adding scripted information for further reading or specifics on where a video point relates to the research. [13] Kurzgesagt - In a Nutshell (2024) Sources - Middle of Scale

That last one is a bit much but could be seen as a gold standard.

Using YouTube cards could do the bibliography and screen sourcing quite nicely, but we are limited to 5

however, quality of sources shouldn't be forgotten either.

This creator sharing their source dive

"and calrifys that..." 32:57 - 33:56 [2] munecat (2022) I Debunked Every "Body Language Expert" on YouTube

which goes on for a while, because academics need to write to keep their jobs, spoken about before.

but 1 source can mean much more than another so more isn't always better.

something else

"Your source for anything..." 17:30 - 17:57 [3] Council of Geeks (2023) What James Somerton can teach us

emphasizing the importance of finding original sources.

However adding sources isn't everything

Original content

12:00

"Maybe you give them a pass..." 1:11:10 - 1:11:34 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

so can you do feel good plagiarism?

"Realising how heavily regurgitated..." 1:15:05 - 1:15:24 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

Which begs the question what is original content?

"Theres a quote..." 0:25 - 0:42 [6] Jay Alto (2023) Debunking the 'originality' myth

A different creator saying

"Creativity is messy..." 0:25 - 0:50 [7] TomSka & Friends (2024) TomSka's Guide To Plagiarism (The Somerton Scale)

And after ranking different stages of plagiarism Tom goes on to say

"I want to say that..." 41:46 - 42:17 [7] TomSka & Friends (2024) TomSka's Guide To Plagiarism (The Somerton Scale)

so how does sourcing help if you can't be truly original, and it doesn't really stop plagiarism.

"The whole point of this is transparency..." 20:45 - 20:55[8] Archaeology Tube (2023) Don't Be Like James Somerton: Advice on Citations and Plagiarism

and this is where integrity, morals and ethics play a part in that feel good plagiarism.

Presentation

14:27

Hbomberguy did a video back in 2017 about plagiarism on YouTube

"Lets talk about plagiarism for a bit..." 0:00 - 0:47 [9] hbomberguy (2017) Here's Three Stories About YouTube Plagiarism

Yes showing plagiarism has been around for a long time on the internet.

But also showing it is about the presentation of the information.

One person saying

"Plagiarism at it's core..." 24:20 - 24:31 [3] Council of Geeks (2023) What James Somerton can teach us

Another going on to say

"Plagiarism is anytime you..." 4:15 - 5:00 [8] Archaeology Tube (2023) Don't Be Like James Somerton: Advice on Citations and Plagiarism

the adding substaial bits will come up later but it can also be about reducing text by paraphrasing

"paraphrasing. That means..." 7:26 - 8:10 [8] Archaeology Tube (2023) Don't Be Like James Somerton: Advice on Citations and Plagiarism

maybe you have done lots of research and you have an original idea from the sources well

"Citations should be used..." 8:19 - 9:09 [8] Archaeology Tube (2023) Don't Be Like James Somerton: Advice on Citations and Plagiarism

and just to be clear even so called experts don't always have great sourcing practices

in a video debunking body language experts, the creator says

"But as I've explained..." 58:30 - 50:52 [2] munecat (2022) I Debunked Every "Body Language Expert" on YouTube

which is where digital literacy, a skill the OECD framework is trying to encourage in education systems, is important.

Misinformation

17:38

Although Hbomberguys video is about plagiarism it is also about misinformation,

bare with me on this

"The graphics are... 8:02 - 8:33 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

I agree. Rewording can lead to false or misleading information but he goes on to say

"The games womens..." 8:34 - 8:50 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

Which I don't think is accurate.

FIFA 16 and FIFA 18, both have the Womens super league in.

Unless I am misunderstanding, Hbomberguy saying Filip was sharing misinformation is misinformation.

That would be like saying there are no mens leagues in FIFA because leagues don't exist in the game

Premier league, champtionship league, league 1 etc

I haven't seen anyone talk about this maybe because

"A lot of it comes..." 9:13 - 9:46 [3] Council of Geeks (2023) What James Somerton can teach us

And there is definatley at least base level work done in the video, and it was very likely a slip

But as I have been reminded, many times, from my video referencing Johnny Harris, a couple of slips reduce the professional feel of the video.

Spelling, Grammer, Pronounciation, or a word or number, like in this case

and Hbomberguy picks out a slipped fact

"There are some..." 1:30:07 - 1:30:53 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

But I think most of us would agree it is the combination of very similar scripting and the slipped facts that doesn't make that video, feel good.

towards the end of the video he discusses misinformation next to plagiarised content

"In current discourse..." 3:36:17 - 3:37:18 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

again alluding to the feel of the video.

It feels good, so the audience assumes it is

when loads of quotes are used it can also feel good

"Seriously huge chunks of... " 54:38 - 55:07 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

but as mentioned earlier using quotes isn't plagiarism,

it is often when people use them

"Who have taken ideas... 4:48 - 5:01 [8] Archaeology Tube (2023) Don't Be Like James Somerton: Advice on Citations and Plagiarism

Hbomberguy going on to talk about lazy creators

"When I think the... " 55:08 - 56:00 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)
Further reading

Rebecca Watson (2023) Study: Why Wikipedia is the Last Good Website

so the lack of adding anything substantial and the taking credit of research is what makes the video feel less good.

if you know they aren't crediting the research

and those characteristics often found in content mill channels

"The phrase content mill... " 1:04:10 - 1:04:40 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

This happens in academia in a similar way

"Oh theres several paper mills..." 4:03 - 4:25 [14] Educational Science (2023) The problem with scientific publishing

paper mills often sharing false or misleading science, so academics can keep their jobs.

content mills often sharing false or misleading information, so they can earn money

on YouTube sometimes this isn't just one channel

"Now these channels..." 13:10 - 16:29 [15] Kyle Hill (2024) Suing YouTube's Science Scammers

before going further into money, I do want to point out this section of Hbomberguy's video

"If your honest about..." 3:33:09 - 3:33:52 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

emphasizing that a video version of an article or book with permission can be a good thing.

but when you don't source the people that put the work in, that doesn't feel good.

again if you find out they weren't crediting people

Hbomberguy sharing an experience at the end of the video, researchers and video creators maybe familiar with

"So I wasted a lot of..." :50:48 - 3:51:01 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

as alluded to earlier, many of the examples Hbomberguy uses in his video share misinformation, as another creator points out

"But if hbomberugy doesn't..." 3:27 - 3:44 [5] Todd in the Shadows (2023) I Fact-Check The Worst Video Essayist On YouTube

and this is where drama and reaction content can kinda go mad.

caveat here

"Drama content..." 4:30 - 5:35 [16] ChrisTheNarc (2024) VangelinaSkov Gets "Canceled" For hbomberguy Video

Reaction content

27:00

spelling and grammar police are all over the internet, but so are

"Funny sound bit..." 4:55 - 5:25 [17] CircleToonsHD (2023) How Reaction Videos Ruined the internet

all online platforms have issues with content reuse and some people argue its ok

but when it is being done on tik tok for marketing profits

"I make videos on Tiktok..." 27:40 - 28:19 [45] Safiya Nygaard (2023) I Bought The Same Dress For $4, $30, $60, and $200

or on YouTube for views, again profits

"As I found out... " 5:20 - 6:26 [15] Kyle Hill (2024) Suing YouTube's Science Scammers

I don't think this is the feel good plagiarism we would accept

and content reuse is everywhere

"How big is..." 7:01 - 7:33 [15] Kyle Hill (2024) Suing YouTube's Science Scammers

but those doing reaction content seem to see reuse as acceptable

reaction content often falling into the content mill category

"And right in the middle..." 1:06:44 -1:06:59 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

many of the creators speaking up about this have raised similar points,

this is just one example clip

"But now its 2023..." 8:02 - 9:32 [17] CircleToonsHD (2023) How Reaction Videos Ruined the internet

but there are so called creator no no's, that rely on ethics and morals

likely also falling back to the integrity of the creator

this clip highlighting one situation

"I'm instead having to talk..." 0:03 - 0:59 [46] Modul Mail (2023) This YouTuber Needs To Be Stopped

emphasizing how odd this reaction and drama content can go.

and because of the way content is pushed to people, it could encourage certain types of behaviour

or certain types of thinking

which move from internet interactions to in person interactions

I am thinking about social learning theories here

this example talks about tik tok but it is similar across all platform algorithms

"Not only that but..." 12:38 - 13:28 [17] CircleToonsHD (2023) How Reaction Videos Ruined the internet

it is the way online content works and you might think this creates echo chambers or filter bubbles preventing you from seeing opposing opinions

which is entirely possible but

"You've probably heard..." 0:48 - 1:37 [47] Kurzgesagt - In a Nutshell (2023) The Internet is Worse Than Ever – Now What?

and when looking into the sources of that video one of them said

"psychological mechanisms allow individuals to disregard messages from individuals whom they deem different" [18] Petter Tornberg (2022) How digital media drive affective polarization through partisan sorting

so you likely see different opinions, you just choose, for whatever reasons not to consume or engage with that content in a way that is reading proficient.

As said in the PISA 2022 report

“Reading in the 21st century involves not only the printed page but electronic formats (i.e. digital reading). It requires triangulating different sources, navigating through ambiguity, distinguishing between fact and opinion, and constructing knowledge” [19] PISA (2022) The State of Learning and Equity in Education

which is a point to expand on later

some of these creators that are using plagiarized content are being sued,

by those that have had enough

"A major Indian..." 10:13 -10:25 [15] Kyle Hill (2024) Suing YouTube's Science Scammers

however, the reaction content creators argue they are adding something to the original.

falling under fair use.

"See the reason..." 4:07 - 4:25 [48] jacksfilms (2023) Let's tttalk about Sssniperwolf.

but fair use is up for interpretation, hence the various issues of content reuse.

YouTube takes a stand on copyright, quite heavily in some cases, but the system misses a lot and can be worked around.

"One positive change..." 8:06 - 8:25 [49] Faultline (2022) Why All Educational Videos Are the Same

however, sourcing and citations isn't looked at by YouTube, YouTube looks for copyright

as one creator discussed

"Essentially copyright..." 8:07 - 9:34 [50] YourSmartOlderSister (2023) Y.S.O.S. Reacts: Hbomberguy’s Anti-Plagiarism Video and the Strong Feelings it Prompted

so it is left up to the creators and the audience to point out potential plagiarism.

one of the many reasons why the Hbomberguy video is so good and important,

it points out issues

The faultline channel said

"But both channels..." 2:11 - 2:22 [49] Faultline (2022) Why All Educational Videos Are the Same

but then you could make the argument that if the reaction channels put a source doc in the description, its OK.

What Hbomberguy said about the Illuminaughti case

"The video has a link..." 51:56 - 52:24 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

But again, that doesn't feel good.

Clickbait

37:30

Clickbait is something else that doesn't feel good online but is done all over the internet.

Veritasium did a video about clickbait saying

"Now there seems..." 3:20 - 4:21 [51] Veritasium (2021) Clickbait is Unreasonable Effective
Further reading

• Social Clicks: What and Who Gets Read on Twitter?: ACM SIGMETRICS Performance Evaluation Review: Vol 44, No 1

just going to emphasize that, satisfy curiosity.

YouTube has said it looks for satisfaction as part of its algorithum,

but only the person, can really say if they were satisfied or not.

Watching a video all the way through might not be satisfactory because of the ending.

Leaving to many open questions.

or the opposite, answering questions you think are more nuanced.

so I would argue there is still a question about what type 1 clickbait is but Derek goes on to say

"What's important to recognize..."5:20 - 6:52 [51] Veritasium (2021) Clickbait is Unreasonable Effective

weather you think the packaging was good or bad clickbait is therefore individual

but when reading about fake news or misinformation one paper said

"we analyze fake news as genre blending, combining elements of traditional news with features that are exogenous to normative professional journalism: misinformation, sensationalism, clickbait, and bias." [20] Rachel Mourao (2019) Fake News as Discursive Integration: An Analysis of Sites That Publish False, Misleading, Hyperpartisan and Sensational Information

suggesting clickbait is part of fake news and therefore related to misinformation.

changing thumbnails on YouTube is common practice

"So if you see a..." 10:00 - 10:28 [51] Veritasium (2021) Clickbait is Unreasonable Effective

you could argue it is deceptive or misleading because we are looking for packaging that gets impressions typically edging towards type 2 clickbait, misinformation

but if the content satisfies the viewer, it might not feel bad

if it doesn't satisfy the viewer it might feel bad

Here Derek discusses the titling choices

"And while there are certailny..." 12:00 - 13:09 [51] Veritasium (2021) Clickbait is Unreasonable Effective

An example from my own analytics was my video about academic publishing.

I kept the thumbnail the same but added Veritasium at the start of the title.

In case you are not sure, the big increase in views is when I changed the title.

Dereks argument is what I used to base the video from, with a couple of clips spread throughout the video.

some people werent satisfied but others were with the content.

I can say it was good clickbait, but others say bad

as Derek said himself

"Is it ironic that..." 14:10 - 14:21 [51] Veritasium (2021) Clickbait is Unreasonable Effective

which when looking at the academic discussions about clickbait and misinformation

"Clickbait was added as a concept because it is closely related to sensationalism and used frequently as a lure on social media, where many fake news stories are disseminated ” [20] Rachel Mourao (2019) Fake News as Discursive Integration: An Analysis of Sites That Publish False, Misleading, Hyperpartisan and Sensational Information

Further reading

• Click bait: Forward-reference as lure in online news headlines - ScienceDirect

another comment confirming what Derek was eluding to

"Clickbait headlines typically invoke what have been called “forward-referencing” strategies to create “curiosity gaps” in the minds of readers" [20] Rachel Mourao (2019) Fake News as Discursive Integration: An Analysis of Sites That Publish False, Misleading, Hyperpartisan and Sensational Information

I want to emphasize the minds of readers.

Leaving the interpretation or feel, up to each individual.

News

43:06

When looking at news.

"“Old” fake news has also been closely associated with propaganda, with political motivations driving the use of false information" [20] Rachel Mourao (2019) Fake News as Discursive Integration: An Analysis of Sites That Publish False, Misleading, Hyperpartisan and Sensational Information

and fake news is

"generally referred to stories including false or misleading information created with an intention to deceive for political or economic gain" [20] Rachel Mourao (2019) Fake News as Discursive Integration: An Analysis of Sites That Publish False, Misleading, Hyperpartisan and Sensational Information

the paper mills and content mills are what I start thinking about

but created with an intention to deceive

does that mean if the intention wasn't to deceive its not misinformation?

one person wrote

"misinformation is information presented as truthful initially but that turns out to be false later on and disinformation is outright false information that is disseminated for propagandistic purposes but may be identifiable as false later on. [source](Misinformation, disinformation, and violent conflict: From Iraq and the “War on Terror” to future threats to peace. (apa.org))

other people discussing this said

"an intention to mislead on the part of the originator of messages is not necessarily required." [78] Lewandowsky (2013) Misinformation, disinformation, and violent conflict: From Iraq and the “War on Terror” to future threats to peace.

but if false news is created with an intention to deceive,

and misinformation can be shared without intention to mislead

false news can't be misinformation or these people disagree somewhere.

shock, disagreement

"An examination of 34 academic articles that used the term “fake news” between 2003 and 2017 resulted in a typology of types of fake news: news satire, news parody, fabrication, manipulation, advertising, and propaganda” [22] Edson Tandoc (2017) Defining “Fake News”:

Further reading

in addition

"At the same time, news is socially constructed, and journalists often exercise subjective judgment on which bits of information to include and which to exclude” [22] Edson Tandoc (2017) Defining “Fake News”:

so does that mean all news is a type of misinformation.

"news is vulnerable not only to journalists’ own preferences [23] David White (1950) The “Gate Keeper”: A Case Study in the Selection of News

"but also to external forces, such as the government, audiences, and advertisers [22] Edson Tandoc (2017) Defining “Fake News”:

Note one of those sources was 1950, this conversations has been going on for a while

"fake news is not a new term.” [22] Edson Tandoc (2017) Defining “Fake News”:

but this conversation suggests fake news, mis or disinformation is, in some way, up to the consumer,

and is influenced heavily by the way information is presented

"As Flanagin and Metzger (2007) demonstrated, visitors who are unfamiliar with a website’s brand uses the sophistication of the website as a mental heuristic to judge its credibility.” [22] Edson Tandoc (2017) Defining “Fake News”:

Further reading

The role of site features, user attributes, and information verification behaviors on the perceived credibility of web-based information - Andrew J. Flanagin, Miriam J. Metzger, 2007

a mental heuristic is like a shortcut for quick decisions.

but using rule-of-thumb decision making has limitations, especially when those presenting information are

for a lack of a better term, trying to manipulate your heuristics, so they can get views, watch time, read time whatever measured metric

"fake news sites regularly rely on an “ecosystem of real-time propaganda” composed of a network of bogus botpowered sites that automatically push the same set of fake news stories" [22] Edson Tandoc (2017) Defining “Fake News”:

highlighting sharing issues online.

"This is compounded by sharing habits among users who often share posts without verifying their authenticity." [22] Edson Tandoc (2017) Defining “Fake News”:

does that then mean we need to verify posts online?

SmarterEveryDay said

"There are no..." 9:28 - 9:54 [52] SmarterEveryDay (2019) Why Your Newsfeed Sucks - Smarter Every Day 212

which sounds like the responsibility has been put on individuals to verify each post

bringing me to this interesting question

"Does fake news remain fake if it is not perceived as real by the audience?" [22] Edson Tandoc (2017) Defining “Fake News”:

My initial response would be yes. Fake is fake.

But that is talking about verifiable facts.

Events, quotes, numbers those sorts of things.

when discussing predictions, interpretations, and things where opinions are shared and philosophy gets involved, now I'm not sure.

I don't think we can verify our interpretations by searching online

Bing AI gave me a response

"In summary, the perception of fake news isn’t solely determined by its inherent falseness; it’s influenced by how individuals engage with information. So, even if fake news isn’t perceived as real by some, its impact can still be significant12. Critical media literacy remains essential in navigating this complex landscape." Bing AI

Baring in mind AI is arguably all plagiarism, and could be misinformation the answer says it isn't fake soley on it's falseness.

Going on to talk about the dangers of self-authority.

"When someone claims they’ve done their own research, it implies that they actively sought out information, critically evaluated it, and arrived at their conclusions. This self-authority can make the ideas seem more credible". Bing AI

Using sources to make the information sound more credible.

The audience using mental heuristics and assumptions which they can't check, unless they do their own research.

which you could argue kinda defeats the point of watching a video

then again that could be part of the research, learning process but

when looking at search engines and misinformation

"While media literacy advocates encourage fact-checking through online searches, the reality is more complex. Conventional wisdom suggests that searching online would reduce belief in misinformation. However, empirical evidence shows that searching to evaluate false news articles can actually boost the perception of their veracity" Bing AI

Bing found a blog which sourced an academic paper which is where that line actually comes from.

The authors in the original paper saying

"we present consistent evidence that online search to evaluate the truthfulness of false news articles actually increases the probability of believing them." [24] Kevin Aslett (2024) Online searches to evaluate misinformation can increase its perceived veracity

Going on to add

"We also find consistent evidence that searching online to evaluate news increases belief in true news from low-quality sources, but inconsistent evidence that it increases belief in true news from mainstream sources." [24] Kevin Aslett (2024) Online searches to evaluate misinformation can increase its perceived veracity

so these people that looked at searching online to evaluate news found

when we try and verify ourselves, we often verify the false or misleading information

they said

"We find that the search effect is concentrated among individuals for whom search engines return lower-quality information." [24] Kevin Aslett (2024) Online searches to evaluate misinformation can increase its perceived veracity

because of the amount of low quality information online,

arguably due to the content mills and paper mills,

people confirm false or misleading information

Hank Green saying

"All this research shows..." 1:09 - 1:45 [53] SciShow Psych (2018) Why Do So Many People Share and Believe Fake News?

also saying

"On top of that..." 1:55 - 2:09 [53] SciShow Psych (2018) Why Do So Many People Share and Believe Fake News?

This is where

"Our findings highlight the need for media literacy programmes to ground their recommendations in empirically tested strategies and for search engines to invest in solutions to the challenges identified." [24] Kevin Aslett (2024) Online searches to evaluate misinformation can increase its perceived veracity

Bing added you can find yourself in what it called information dark

"Instead of leading people toward accurate information, doing their own research sometimes takes them deeper into the information dark. The act of searching doesn’t always lead to reliable sources or debunking; it can reinforce existing beliefs." Bing AI

confirmation bias

and Bing goes a little further on the search talking about

"Metaphorical Passive Experience: Unlike social media, where misinformation spreads actively, online search is metaphorically a passive experience. People expect to find answers, but the quality of those answers depends on their search terms and sources." Bing AI

all that to say, lateral reading and credible sources are important for media literacy.

in my video about faulty journalism on YouTube, I used Johnny Harris as an example

he said in the past

"OK, my number three..." 5:33 - 5:49 [54] Johnny Harris (2020) I'm a Journalist Who Hates The News

This comment relates to American news, however considering news is vulnerable and an argument could be made that all communication is a type of misinformation

if the person watching it uses their media literacy competency, and reading proficiency, in theory they shouldn't be tricked

but as the PISA report shows, PISA looking at 15 year olds, there are lots of people below the baseline.

For adults, that could be and likely will be different.

At the end of my past video I said

"I enjoy YouTube..." 20:27 - 21:01 [55] Educational Science (2023) Johnny Harris: Faulty YouTube Journalism

Hbomberguy on what I believe was an interview about plagiarism, said that

"There's no..." 0:05 - 0:30 [56] PassionfruitCreators (2023) HBomberguy’s Response Following “Plagiarism and You(Tube)”

which if we extend to news, journalism and misinformation its similar,

there is no system check,

emphasizing creator integrity and audience media literacy

but sensationalised potentially misleading information does well,

Sensationalism

53:35

"Sensationalism is a characteristic of news content where emotional or dramatic elements of a story are emphasized in an attempt to arouse audience emotions or attract attention" [20] Rachel Mourao (2019) Fake News as Discursive Integration: An Analysis of Sites That Publish False, Misleading, Hyperpartisan and Sensational Information

On YouTube that could be editing music, cuts, graphics, graphs and all the other effects that can be put into presentation.

Johnny Harris said

"You know your..." 34:50 - 35:30 [57] Chris Hau (2022) The Curious Mind of Johnny Harris

which makes sense. It adds to the video. It makes it interesting.

Better impressions, views, watch time, and money.

But at what cost.

One person wrote sensationalism is

“identified by stories that intentionally evoked emotion in the beginning of the article, used extreme circumstances to grab attention, simplified and trivialized a complex topic, promoted shock value, or were presented in a tabloidlike way.”” [25] Danielle Brown (2016) A new sensation? An international exploration of sensationalism and social media recommendations in online news publications

I am going to emphasize here that this is up for interpretation, so there is no set answer, and this was written about writing not videos

However, adding style and presentation to information does add the risk of sensationalising the information.

tricking the audience into feeling informed

The critiques I showed in the video talking about Johnny Harris showed other creators talking about his content saying it was simplifying or trivializing complex topics,

potentially being misleading

I argued for creator integrity

"If you have integrity..." 3:49 - 3:59 [55] Educational Science (2023) Johnny Harris: Faulty YouTube Journalism

Which is important with the internet as it

"has allowed for the proliferation of false or misleading news stories." [26] Scott Dylan (2023) From Bad to Worse: The Declind in Journalistic Integrity

When Dr Mike spoke about the, I know all, health professionals promoting cures he said

"This may suprise you..." 2:55 - 3:20 [58] The epidemic of the "I Know All" expert | Mikhail (Doctor Mike) Varshavski | TEDxMonteCarlo

SmarterEveryDay suggested we are responsible for verifying content,

It sounds like Dr Mike wants us to question, and probe before believing an expert

"Look I get it..." 7:23 - 7:50 [58] The epidemic of the "I Know All" expert | Mikhail (Doctor Mike) Varshavski | TEDxMonteCarlo

of course we all have different levels of expertise, talking about the breadth and depth of understanding here

but Johnny said

"I think the idea..." 24:10 - 24:25 [59] Johnny Harris (2023) What You Should Know About Joe Rogan

adding some context here, I think as he has a team helping him with research so fact checking isn't just him,

I don't think getting something wrong is that bad. If appropriate action is taken. Correction or retraction for reupload.

but assuming people wont look at other sources comes across a little pessimistic or negative.

I lean more idealistic in my thinking so that is my bias

and as Dr Mike said

"What this means is..." 8:34 - 9:08 [58] The epidemic of the "I Know All" expert | Mikhail (Doctor Mike) Varshavski | TEDxMonteCarlo

so when content is presented in a way that is credible potentially manipulating audience heuristics,

adding sources, editing, potentially simplifying for the story

those that interpret the creator as having expertise, maybe believe the opinion with limited challenge

then again if the platforms do show related content I revert back to the previous quote

so the audience may not read sources, but they will likely get the opportunity to watch related content

Navigating information

58:47

Dr Mike said

"Know that the best..." 10:40 - 11:23 [58] The epidemic of the "I Know All" expert | Mikhail (Doctor Mike) Varshavski | TEDxMonteCarlo]

I recognize that was health specific but that feels like good guidence when looking at content online.

Does it use meta analysis where possible, or at least cite varying high quality sources

As John Green said in a course about navigating digital information

"The sheer existence..." 6:30 - 6:54 [60] Crash Course (2015) The Facts about Fact Checking: Crash Course Navigating Digital Information #2

and he said later

"Now I know that..." 9:50 - 10:52 [60] Crash Course (2015) The Facts about Fact Checking: Crash Course Navigating Digital Information #2

so when looking at content saying check the sources doesn't seem to be the best advice

John, and many others, just using this as an example clip, are more specific

"The fact checkers..." 3:52 - 4:15 [60] Crash Course (2015) The Facts about Fact Checking: Crash Course Navigating Digital Information #2

but of course there are some people, after doing all that still hold onto their beliefs

"In theory..." 1:10 - 1:40 [61] Vox (2017) Why fact-checking can’t stop Trump’s lies

but searching online could confirm misinformation

and even seeing facts that go against your belief might not be enough

"It might be..." 2:06 - 3:24 [61] Vox (2017) Why fact-checking can’t stop Trump’s lies

Changing someone's belief about something is very challenging,

especially beliefs that are somewhat engrained in who they see themselves as

removing the emotion out of content has been one way to tackle the attachment some people have with information

Wikipedia use 3 content policies to try and reduce heuristic manipulation

"Wikipedians also adhere..." 4:15 - 4:44 [62] Crash Course (2019) Using Wikipedia: Crash Course Navigating Digital Information #5

On wikipedia anyone can edit pages to try and stick to these content policies, yes admins are involved as well,

but on social media and on YouTube specifically, that is up to the creators, and only creators.

"Anyway thanks to..." 7:26 - 8:03 [62] Crash Course (2019) Using Wikipedia: Crash Course Navigating Digital Information #5

which strengthens my thinking that all information is misinformation, but on a sliding scale

"The willingness of..." 2:59 - 4:19 [63] Crash Course (2019) Evaluating Photos & Videos: Crash Course Navigating Digital Information #7

There is an argument to be made that it is the responsibility of the platforms to remove misinformation but as SmarterEveryDay said in their mini series

"Imagine being..." 2:30 - 2:56 [64] SmarterEveryDay (2019) Who is Manipulating Facebook? - Smarter Every Day 215
Further reading

The rise of social bots | Communications of the ACM

emphasizing language as an added barrier here, but still showing how complex this is for tech companies.

Later in the series sharing an experience with bots

"So to try this out..." 3:49 - 4:58 [64] SmarterEveryDay (2019) Who is Manipulating Facebook? - Smarter Every Day 215

which shows how people are finding ways to trick the detection systems time and time again.

I am trying to avoid free speech in this video but with tech companies trying to prevent misinformation this clip becomes useful

"Often times..." 7:36 - 7:58 [64] SmarterEveryDay (2019) Who is Manipulating Facebook? - Smarter Every Day 215

which means that

"Facebook has actual..." 8:22 - 8:32 [64] SmarterEveryDay (2019) Who is Manipulating Facebook? - Smarter Every Day 215

Facebook and other tech companies like YouTube are adding more context to content

facebook using the i for information, YouTube with the context tab at the bottom of some videos

But Seth Godin said something in his blog which could be used by tech companies or creators

"When you’re trying to make an argument in a scientific journal or a history monograph, you’ll need footnotes. Show your work. Make it clear who came before and what you’re basing your thesis on.

But it seems as though when we’re nervous and afraid, we don’t need any footnotes. “No,” is all we have to offer.

Show your work. It’s a good way to demonstrate that your decision isn’t based on fear alone." [27] Seth Godin (2022) Fear and footnotes

emphasizing the importance of showing your work and your thinking as a creator.

which tech companies could make easier by allowing links off platform to sources

of course that goes against their business model to keep people on their platform, but then we come back to cost

money being more important than intellectual transparency

Information hazards

1:07:55

The BBC did a piece about AI misinformation where children said

"With the right..." 1:43 - 1:54 [43] BBC News (2023) AI used to target kids with disinformation - BBC News

then saying

"That video was..." 6:04 - 6:21 [43] BBC News (2023) AI used to target kids with disinformation - BBC News

emphasizing how easily children can be pursuaded

but of course that could and probably does extend to adults as well

one girl saying

"The person who was..." 2:50 - 2:53 [43] BBC News (2023) AI used to target kids with disinformation - BBC News

which sums up the issue of presentation

it can and is used to manipulate human heuristics and bias towards credibility

A Stanford education group did a study and found

"Our "digital natives" may be able to flit between Facebook and Twitter while simultaneously uploading a selfie to Instagram and texting a friend. But when it comes to evaluating information that flows through social media, channels, they are easily duped." [28] Sam Wineburge (2016) Evaluating Information: The Cornerstone of Civic Online Reasoning

Some have described this situation as

“an era of fake news" [29] Yuxi Wong (2019) Systematic Literature Review on the Spread of Health-related Misinformation on Social Media

and a time of

"informational moral panic" [30] Fernando Miro-Llinares (2021) Misinformation about fake news: A systematic critical review of empirical studies on the phenomenon and its status as a ‘threat’

this moral panic potentially caused by all the misinformation

but one person spoke about information hazards

"Information hazards are risks that arise from the dissemination or the potential dissemination of true information that may cause harm or enable some agent to cause harm" [31] Nick Bostrom (2011) Information Hazards

"Dr Bostrom..." 1:35 - 2:16 [65] Kyle Hill (2021) INFOHAZARDDS: Things No One Should Know

so not misinformation but does relate to our attention towards information

information we want, or don't want to hear

sounds similar, the presentation of information being used to persuade action

Misinformation doesn't have an agreed upon definition, and I don't think there can be

but if we consider information hazards as part of this conversation as well, now we are looking at all content

Mainstream News

1:10:40

In my previous video I said

"Journalistic integrity..." 3:40 - 3:48 [55] Educational Science (2023) Johnny Harris: Faulty YouTube Journalism

some people interpreted this as me suggesting mainstream media is trustworthy, and has good journalistic integrity.

on reflection I can understand that interpretation

but that wasn't my intention. my intention was to point out they handle it better than YouTube journalists but still make mistakes

In December 2006, RTBF, the French-language public service broadcaster in Belgium, interrupted regular television programming with a breaking news report about the splitting-up of Belgium as a federal state.” [32] Tarlach McGonagle, (2017) “Fake news”: False fears or real concerns?

Not entirely accurate and

"Its critics described it as an irresponsible action for a public service broadcaster.” [32] Tarlach McGonagle, (2017) “Fake news”: False fears or real concerns?

Further reading:

BBC NEWS | World | Europe | Viewers fooled by 'Belgium split'

"In 2010, a similar, high-profile hoax was broadcast in Georgia. The progovernment Imedi TV station broadcast a fabricated report about a Russian invasion of Georgia. Tensions between Russia and Georgia at the time rendered the story plausible in the eyes of many viewers and considerable panic ensued." [32] Tarlach McGonagle, (2017) “Fake news”: False fears or real concerns?

To be clear both of those news stories were inaccurate but aired on mainstream news.
We all have room for improvement

Bullshit

1:12:00

This is where I want to start talking about bullshit

Here we focus on pseudo-profound bullshit, which consists of seemingly impressive assertions that are presented as true and meaningful but are actually vacuous." [33] Gordon Pennycook (2023) On the reception and detection of pseudo-profound bullshit

Further reading:

An overview of online fake news: Characterization, detection, and discussion

having or showing a lack thought or intelligence

I think this article puts it quite well

"people are likely encountering more bullshit in their everyday lives than ever before." [33] Gordon Pennycook (2023) On the reception and detection of pseudo-profound bullshit

now

"bullshitting is something that we likely all engage in to some degree" [33] Gordon Pennycook (2023) On the reception and detection of pseudo-profound bullshit

one person saying

"fake news is Frankfurtian bullshit" [34] Nikil Mukerji (2018) What is Fake News?

Further reading:

essentially suggesting they are not focused on the truth, rather their own purpose,

often in this case leading back to money

but it could be about image, relating back to the I know all doctors Dr Mike spoke about

making it sound like you know or understand when your expertise could be lacking

I will preface this next bit by saying,

Being from England and guns not having anything to do with my life, this conversation goes well beyond my level of expertise

and I do enjoy and respect Johnny and his team for all the work they do

however this is an example brought to my attention from my Johnny Harris video by a commenter that I think is a good case study here

"However, after watching..." 0:17 - 0:29 [66] Colion Noir (2023) Debunking the Viral Gun Control Propaganda: Why the Swiss Love Their Guns More Than Americans

Johnny and his team making a video about guns, and another person having a different opinion

"I was struck by..." 1:32 - 2:05 [66] Colion Noir (2023) Debunking the Viral Gun Control Propaganda: Why the Swiss Love Their Guns More Than Americans

to me this looks and sounds like the creator team for, Johnny, being selective with the information they share

"The idea of a..." 3:49 - 4:31 [66] Colion Noir (2023) Debunking the Viral Gun Control Propaganda: Why the Swiss Love Their Guns More Than Americans

bringing back that bullshit quote

"seemingly impressive assertions that are presented as true and meaningful but are actually vacuous" [33] Gordon Pennycook (2023) On the reception and detection of pseudo-profound bullshit

so I am asking myself is there lack of thought in Johnny's presentation of the information

"This whole legal..." 6:24 - 7:42 [66] Colion Noir (2023) Debunking the Viral Gun Control Propaganda: Why the Swiss Love Their Guns More Than Americans

lack of thought or intelligence sounds harsh but this response seems to challenge Johnny's teams expertise quite a bit

suggesting an alternative potential purpose over sharing the truth

whatever meaning you put to truth

"It did away with..." 11:21 - 12:18 [66] Colion Noir (2023) Debunking the Viral Gun Control Propaganda: Why the Swiss Love Their Guns More Than Americans

an argument where the presentation of the story is simplifying to the point of misinformation

if this topic interests you go explore,

my point here is that even with a team, sources, thought and time put into a video, someone can call it bullshit

A different video, discussing education started with
"Why aren't we..." 0:00 - 0:10 [67] Answer in Progress (2023) what school didn't teach you about money

That got me hooked,

the entire point of that part of the video

skipping to the end

"I tried to make..." 23:20 - 23:48 [67] Answer in Progress (2023) what school didn't teach you about money

which not gonna lie triggered me.

they said we were taught but we are still confused,

and then spends most the video giving advice

the video doesn't discuss much about lessons, teaching, curriculum choices, ages, or anything school education related really

I could call it ball shit

but it does have expertise in the video

highlighting a packaging mismatch

I could argue clickbait, misinformation, bullshit but it is good content

Just because it went against what I expected doesn't mean it was wrong or bad

Dr Mike talking about health content said

"I know we know..." 1:34 - 2:35 [68] YouTube Creator Liaison (2023) The Future of YouTube Medical Misinformation Policies (Feat. @DoctorMike )

which to me sounds like using content in context of everything else

and he highlights a main struggle with creating and sharing content

"This is increadibly..." 4:05 - 4:18 [68] YouTube Creator Liaison (2023) The Future of YouTube Medical Misinformation Policies (Feat. @DoctorMike )

AI Technology

1:20:15

Hbomberguy talks about AI technology saying

"As technology progresses..." 3:40:15 - 3:40:32 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

which, when I think back to feel good plagiarism, this isn't

"None of the people..." 3:41:19 - 3:42:07 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

theives yes, but also those looking to learn

if AI plagiarises, it copies more likely accurate information.

if AI doesn't plagiarise then it is just making it all up which I would argue is even worse

Yes this makes plagiarism easier, but I would argue because of the paraphrasing examples.

Which is what most people do already.

Paraphrase and take inspiration and ideas from others without sharing or showing their work

When talking about AI paraphrasing plagiarism in practice Hbomberguy says

"Not to downplay..." 3:43:04 - 3:43:38 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

Further reading:

BBC News (2023) AI used to target kids with disinformation - BBC News

and AI is stealing certain sample data so it is still riddled with human biases

"Humans often profile..." 1:21:25 - 1:22:23 [2] munecat (2022) I Debunked Every "Body Language Expert" on YouTube

even AI bots created for games have flaws like the worlds best GO bot

"Look closley..." 5:17 - 6:15 [69] Kyle Hill (2023) ChatGPT's HUGE Problem

Further reading

Papadopoulos 2023 AI loses to human being at Go after seven years of victories

AI follows a set of rules, but society doesn't really have a set of rules to follow

We need to give and enforce those rules which fall back to the morals, ethics and integrity of each person

Social Media

1:24:20

on social media

"An abundance of information sources online leads individuals to rely heavily on heuristics and social cues in order to determine the credibility of information and to shape their beliefs, which are in turn extremely difficult to correct or change." [35] David Lazer (2017) Combating Fake News Agenda for Research

Hank Green talking about YouTube said

"But you know what..." 0:45 - 1:20 [70] SciShow (2024) 10,000:1

which I fully agree with but as he says

"We've been doing this..." 3:24 - 3:39 [70] SciShow (2024) 10,000:1

so those doing better, might take longer to make the content

and when it comes to many topics including those in academia you get situations like this

"Is that the..." 3:00 - 3:25 [71] Medlife Crisis 2 (2024) I made a mistake. I’m sorry.

and on YouTube when you do want to challenge someone

"I think it's..." 13:49 - 14:11 [3] Council of Geeks (2023) What James Somerton can teach us

and I think mistakes are ok, could arguably be encouraged in some cases to help with learning

if people are not learning from the mistakes and making them in bulk, that is where it becomes an issue

for me at least

"Because when you start..." 4:58 - 5:57 [6] Jay Alto (2023) Debunking the 'originality' myth

this is where the learning experience in public and regulation of professional work are tied together online

if you make a mistake online for everyone to see, everyone will see it.

is that a good learning environment well, it depends

good faith rebuttals like this

"So if YouTube..." 0:18 - 0:50 [72] Con Hathy (2023) Hexagons Are NotSoGreatAgons

or similar feedback videos is how I think we all develop but

"Conflict and disagreement..." 3:39 - 4:24 [47] Kurzgesagt - In a Nutshell (2023) The Internet is Worse Than Ever – Now What?

social media making lots of things easier

talking, agreeing, disagreeing and labelling

"Whether you want..." 4:39 - 5:40 [47] Kurzgesagt - In a Nutshell (2023) The Internet is Worse Than Ever – Now What?

but sorting is not necessarily good or bad

disagreement and arguments being something some people look for

"And I don't always..." 1:37:00 - 1:38:08 [73] Lex Fridman (2023) Jimmy Wales: Wikipedia | Lex Fridman Podcast #385

but as Lex goes on to discuss, it depends on the quality of the debates

"There is like a..." 1:38:14 - 1:39:01 [73] Lex Fridman (2023) Jimmy Wales: Wikipedia | Lex Fridman Podcast #385

Now even if these discussions happen it doesn't mean they will be seen

Years ago I heard some claims about sleep from a video on a book by Matthew Walker.

I was skeptical about the claims so did some lateral reading and found a blog by Alexey Guzey.

He challenges lots of the claims Matthew Walker makes.

Further content:

But 2 years after the original blog post heavily critiquing the book Andrew Huberman talks with Matthew Walker about the book on hid podcast.
The science & practice for perfecting your sleep

Not bringing up the critique

This is where what Johnny says about

"When joe has..." [59] Johnny Harris (2023) What You Should Know About Joe Rogan

has some merit.

This again moves into freedom of speech, which as I said I am going to avoid for this video,

but I think this further emphasizes the importance of reading proficiency and scientific integrity as competencies,

not only for children in school but adults using the internet.

Having written a book, with titles and history, doesn't mean they aren't spreading a form of misinformation

Creator responsibility

1:32:15

Response videos are typically longer than the original as this example shows

"How did he..." 0:27 - 0:50 Thought Slime (2023) I Investigated the Biggest Scumbag on YouTube

first I thought, well the first video will get the attention and views,

but when considering the drama of a critique video maybe that would get the views

this is where I think YouTube disucssion could mimic academic debates but instead of written publications, they are through online video.

I have seen it with personal arguments back and fourth but not so much with concept or topic related discussions.

"In some (but by no means all) online journalism, the approach has been to ‘publish now, correct later,’ the idea being that the ‘wisdom of crowds’ or crowdsourced fact checking can easily correct errors in this medium." [36] Damian Tambini (2017) Fake News: Public Policy Responses

the medium spoken about there is online blogging,

but does the wisdom of the crowds hold up on YouTube?

Feel free to discuss that in the comments

but as Veritasium said

"Now that we know..." 5:17 - 5:35 [37] Veritasium (2014) The Most Persistent Myth

and I would argue those posting videos on YouTube,

no matter what the topic

are educators

Veritasium says

"Luckily the fundamental..." 5:54 - 6:23 [37] Veritasium (2014) The Most Persistent Myth

so when I think about plagiarism, misinformation and videos on YouTube I think about the consumer

you could say student but I don't think that label is that useful here, we are all learners and educators in communication with different levels of expertise

can the information help the consumer

when it comes to harm

"And when interviewed..." 6:30 7:04 [38] Pete Judo (2024) She Resigned?! Harvard President Plagiarism Claims Explained

I am not saying plagiarism is good but if the person being plagiarised doesn't mind,

it again falls back to feel good plagiarism, the morals and ethics of the individual assessing the situation

All YouTube creators as educators might not feel right but

"This article reviews the state of research on citizen journalism over the past decade" [39] Melissa Waal (2015) Citizen Journalism: A retrospective on what we know, an agenda for what we don’t

going on to say

"Citizen journalism reflects a broader paradigm shift toward more participation by more untrained people across many areas of society (consider the citizen scientist movement, or the incorporation of audience content into professional art projects, etc.)." [39] Melissa Waal (2015) Citizen Journalism: A retrospective on what we know, an agenda for what we don’t

Other terms like networked journalism, participatory journalism, even open-source journalism have been used

Further reading

But what is a professional journalist, or more accurate for this conversation a professional educator?

Teachers have qualifications that vary on the country, state, and even school level in some places

we use teaching as a verb for loads of people, youtubers included

does mean they are a qualified teacher, no, but are still educating

YouTube Comments

1:36:26

In the comment section of a critique video 2 educators discuss this topic of misinformation, more specifically presentation.

Veritasium saying "I'm disappointed you didn't fix any of the factual errors we alerted you to via email before you launched this video" [40] Tom Nicholas (2021) Veritasium: A Story of YouTube Propaganda

Tom replying with "I imagine you know the flaws in these responses to what you mistakenly call "factual errors" but I'll do you the courtesy of replying to them anyway." [40] Tom Nicholas (2021) Veritasium: A Story of YouTube Propaganda

This brief conversation being filled with moral and ethical differences about how to present information online.

I mentioned earlier Hbomberguy forced me to make an assumption.

repeat past clip

Those sorts of assumptions I think we can limit from videos, but there are plenty of other assumptions we can't.

Post publish conversation being a place to clear things up like with the Tom and Veritasium conversation

YouTube comments are a mess but additional sorting options might be a way to help.

Looking at the comments of Nic's video there is the pinned comment [40] Tom Nicholas (2021) Veritasium: A Story of YouTube Propaganda

then the option to sort by newest first or top comment.

The Top comments view shows what viewers are likely to value and interact with based on various signals, such as the comment text, handle text, channel name text, avatar, and video.
[41] Google (2024) Learn about comments that aren’t showing or have been removed - Computer - YouTube Help

Sounds like AI being involved somewhere

I am not an avid user of reddit, but their ranking or sorting by hot, new, top with the date options seems far better to me teacher reddit

However, this use of comments is not what talking about

"But what happens..." 14:31 - 15:05 [42] The Kavernacle (2024) We Need to Talk about James Somerton's Legacy and Internet Villains

Feedback, constructive criticism, alternative interpretations yes but as this creator says

"When someone..." 22:40 - 23:05 [42] The Kavernacle (2024) We Need to Talk about James Somerton's Legacy and Internet Villains

Now I don't think those comments will stop, but trying to discourage them somehow is what I am now thinking about

Professionalisation

1:39:20

but as YouTube has become a platform for professional educators like many of the big science communicators

regulating content could adopt some of the regulation guidelines from education systems.

When I hear things like this

"The idea that..." 5:55 - 6:04 [43] BBC News (2023) AI used to target kids with disinformation - BBC News

I tend to agree

It is argument suggesting YouTube might not want to prevent content containing misinformation if it gets views and thus money.

but YouTube said

"YouTube told us..."6:45 - 7:12 [43] BBC News (2023) AI used to target kids with disinformation - BBC News

firstly that is YouTube kids, not all YouTube.

Second, the context panels, also mentioned earlier, from my experience appear on some videos that I wouldn't expect and other videos missing context.

Here is one example

"Now why is..." 1:11 - 1:55 [75] Louis Rossmann (2023) youtube's attempts to warn users about misinformation are hysterical

As Hbomberguy says

"Internet video..." 42:31- 42:48 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

and as Tom adds

"Plagiarism town..." 44:14 - 44:56 [7] TomSka & Friends (2024) TomSka's Guide To Plagiarism (The Somerton Scale)

Which Council of Geeks rounds up nicely

"There's terms of service..." 30:44 - 31:45 [3] Council of Geeks (2023) What James Somerton can teach us

Going back to Hbomberguy

"Why are we holding..." 3:35:32 - 3:36:17 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

Now YouTube have made moves in the health professional content creator space

"YouTube has recently..." 0:12 - 0:35 [68] YouTube Creator Liaison (2023) The Future of YouTube Medical Misinformation Policies (Feat. @DoctorMike )

which Dr Mike expands on by saying

"So YouTube has..." 3:12 - 3:36 [68] YouTube Creator Liaison (2023) The Future of YouTube Medical Misinformation Policies (Feat. @DoctorMike )

That then potentially limits the expertise tab to people with degrees and certificates.

I think a step forwards, but still with limitations.

Information disorder

1:43:48

Hank Green talking about money said

"it’s about time we gave users the ability to decide what kind of content they want to reward." [76] Hank Green (2020) Letting Users Decide Who Gets Paid

and I would argue the like dislike button did a good job of that for video content.

Here are some other ideas

"Now all this is..." 4:50 - 5:40 [53] SciShow Psych (2018) Why Do So Many People Share and Believe Fake News?

and like this creator says

"Considering the problem..." 21:27 - 21:55 [4] Cass Eris (2023) Citation Needed for You(Tube)? - How to not be a plagiarist

for creators

"We talked alot..." 3:29:58 - 3:30:02 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

mirrored by Tom

"inspiration is a trigger" 13:00 - 13:11 [5] Todd in the Shadows (2023) I Fact-Check The Worst Video Essayist On YouTube

and as Hank puts nicely when discussing AI

"the question of..." 3:28 - 3:50 [77] vlogbrothers (2024) How to Detect AI Images (and why it doesn't matter)

Looking at some of those that are working on this problem one person said

“Large-scale correction of specific misinformation cannot succeed without the support of the media or widespread dissemination of the corrective information” [78] Stephan Lewandowsky (2013) Misinformation, disinformation, and violent conflict: from Iraq and the "War on Terror" to future threats to peace

another adding

"even if truth itself proves elusive, the process is a goal in itself, and it must be safeguarded" [79] Tarlach McGonagle (2017) “Fake news”: False fears or real concerns?

a book about this said that they

"refrain from using the term ‘fake news’, for two reasons. First, it is woefully inadequate to describe the complex phenomena of information pollution. The term has also begun to be appropriated by politicians around the world to describe news organisations whose coverage they find disagreeable. [...]it’s becoming a mechanism by which the powerful can clamp down upon, restrict, undermine and circumvent the free press." [80] Claire Wardle (2017) Information Disorder: Toward an interdisciplinary framework for research and policy making

Further reading

Stop calling everything fake news.

So they refer to this issue as an information disorder

This figure is one way of look at the information disorder [80] Claire Wardle (2017) Information Disorder: Toward an interdisciplinary framework for research and policy making

Mis-information is when false information is shared, but no harm is meant.
Dis-information is when false information is knowingly shared to cause harm.
Mal-information is when genuine information is shared to cause harm, often by moving information designed to stay private into the public spheres.
[80] Claire Wardle (2017) Information Disorder: Toward an interdisciplinary framework for research and policy making

Further reading

'F*** News' should be replaced by these words, Claire Wardle says

Looking back at the figure, misinformation with false connection encompasses sensationalism, bias, clickbait and the manipulation tactics online creators use.

As this figure shows there are lots of elements to this information disorder [80] Claire Wardle (2017) Information Disorder: Toward an interdisciplinary framework for research and policy making

"the ‘agent’ who creates a fabricated message might be different to the agent who produces that message—who might also be different from the ‘agent’ who distributes the message." [80] Claire Wardle (2017) Information Disorder: Toward an interdisciplinary framework for research and policy making

Looking at this figure there are lots of different questions we could explore.

But most of us are not going to do that.

Unless as Hank said, red flags are raised.

This is what the international Federation of Library Associations and Institutions suggested in 2017 to stop fake news
consider the source
check the author
check the date
check your biases
read beyond or laterally read
look for supporting sources
ask if it is a joke
and ask the experts
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[81] International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (2017) IFLA Repository: How To Spot Fake News

baring in mind what we said about experts.

"What this means..." 8:35 - 8:40 [58] The epidemic of the "I Know All" expert | Mikhail (Doctor Mike) Varshavski | TEDxMonteCarlo

When looking at governments, this act from Singapore caught my interest.

and for context singapore was number one in the most recent PISA report, a report looking at educational systems

The purpose of this Act is —

• to prevent the communication of false statements of fact in Singapore and to enable measures to be taken to counteract the effects of such communication;

• to suppress the financing, promotion and other support of online locations that repeatedly communicate false statements of fact in Singapore;

• to enable measures to be taken to detect, control and safeguard against coordinated inauthentic behaviour and other misuses of online accounts and bots; and

• to enable measures to be taken to enhance disclosure of information concerning paid content directed towards a political end.
[82] Singapore Statutes Online (2024) Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act 2019

This act includes potential guidelines worth looking at for tech companies that want to take intellectual transparency more seriously.

The book on the information disorder also lists plenty of suggestions.

but at the end of the day, there is no answer, only ongoing learning experiences and a continuing discussion.

For Plagiarism Hbomberguy says

"why did this happen money" 1:10:56 - 1:11:21 [1] hbomberguy (2023) Plagiarism and You(Tube)

and when looking at content online, we will all get a different vibe with content

misinformation is the same, what vibe do you get

no rigid definition, so hard to regulate but I could be wrong so let me know your thoughts in the comments below

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