Debunking of fake news in Telegram in 2022: comparative study

• Autor(a) principal: Mikhailidi, Kristina
• Data de Publicação: 2023
• Tipo de documento: Dissertação
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.26/44710
• topic: Fake news; Fact-checking; Data verification; Telegram; Russian-Ukrainian war; Content analysis

The headlines of the leading world media have been changed when the war between Russia and Ukraine started. Debunking of fake news became a key importance in the work of news media as unverified information is leading to the loss of respectability. There are certain procedures of fact-checking that are well-recognized by the international journalist society. Unlike generally accepted rules, Telegram publishing policies differ from many social networks, as in Telegram there is no moderation of published content that gives a great opportunity to produce fake news and as the result of it - quick mass disinformation. Despite the fact that Telegram is one of the fastest growing social networks, there are few studies about debunking fake news in Telegram. Therefore, this research carried out a comparative study between Russian and Ukrainian anti-fake Telegram channels during one week in March 2022, in order to discover the debunking procedures that have been used by the authors of those channels. Along with the researches of content analysis which are introduced by Lasswell and Bardin, the author used, during the investigation, the methodological approaches that gained widespread popularity in the modern era - the era of «post truth». For the purpose of the study, the author sought for the difference in the debunking policies between Russian and Ukrainian channels. In order to understand the intentions of the channels, the author analyzed the emotional, subtextual and allegorical background of the publications. Telegram channels use provocative content in which the researcher found elements of propaganda. This study finds out that there is different content on the Telegram channels of both sides of the conflict. Telegram channels use semantic instruments in order to increase the audience. The findings would be beneficial for the journalist community, as well as for the entire audience, who should take care of verification of information and do better fact-checking.