Dealing with Misinformation

How to Avoid Misinformation

Dealing with misinformation is an evolving and complex process; with feedback and experience, we will continuously improve it. To reduce misinformation on Goodself, we request input from our community. We encourage you to use the reporting tool when you see content that may fall under the category of misinformation so that we can promptly address any concerns that may arise.
This is our community - it can only work if we all take care of it, are kind, and are smart about what info we see and follow. For more details on how to avoid misinformation, click here:  Misinformation Policy

There are many types of misinformation that you can come across. Some examples include but are not limited to:

Fabricated content: Completely false content.
Manipulated content: Distortion of genuine information or imagery, for example, a headline that is made more sensational through distortion(s).
Imposter content: The impersonation of genuine sources, for example by using the branding of an established news agency; deep fakes.
Misleading content: Misleading use of information, for example by presenting a comment as a fact; often popularized by ‘clickbait’.
False context of connection: Factually accurate content that is shared with false contextual information, for example when a headline of an article does not reflect the content.
Satire and parody: Presenting humorous but false narratives as if they are true, although not usually categorized as fake news, which may unintentionally mislead the viewer.

Look at who created the post and see their profile. Are they qualified to post content in this area? Can you trust what they are saying?
Did they include reference link(s) and/or source(s) to back up their posted content?
Look at what they are saying – is it an opinion piece? Or a thoughtful article based on factual information.
What type of information are they using? Is the information used well-researched, reputable facts or is the information bring manipulated or taken out of context to fit a specific narrative?
Look at when this information was written. Sometimes articles written many years ago may not have the most correct information.

We have divided types of misinformation into tiers, and our response is based on the tier the misinformation falls under: