As the saying goes, there are always three sides to every story:
And any time the world erupts in controversy of any kind, fake news also skyrockets.
While the onus is on everyone to combine critical thinking skills and research to spot fake news, as communications pros this responsibility is not just a societal one, it’s a professional one.
So how do you spot fake news? Especially in a digital world where it is very easily spread, often aligns with our own bias, and sometimes is accidentally covered by mainstream media sites.
While there are many super smart and easy ways to vet sources, spot suspicious stories, and fact-check information, I’m going to focus on one particularly important research skill today.
How to spot fake news with information triangulation.
Not only is that fun to say fast 10 times.
information triangulation.information triangulation.information triangulation.information triangulation.information triangulation.information triangulation.information triangulation.
It’s a crucial research skill for any communications pro.
Information triangulation is important when it comes to spotting fake news and it’s a skill that will help in any type of research you do. Competitive analysis, crisis preparedness and response, brand monitoring, SWOT, and even just in building your communications strategy.
One important note: what I outline below is NOT the specific triangulation process needed for a research study. Instead, it uses those methods and processes to apply to the needs of communications pros, specifically when trying to figure out how to spot fake news.
So if you are a scientist looking for specifics around data triangulation for your research study, you aren’t my monkey (but I still love you and thank you for your contribution to science).
So what is information triangulation?
It’s a process of gathering and validating information from multiple sources (by definition two or more, but personally I always use at least three).
There are five types of triangulation:
To understand how to spot fake news, you must be aware of these different types of information perspectives so you can properly diversify your research.
Each scenario is different, but here is an example of a process you can use to triangulate information.
Your first step is to evaluate the situation:
Over seven years, researchers studied thousands of people over the age of 45 from the area of Framingham, Mass., on their drinking and eating habits. Researchers followed-up a decade later to see who had experienced a stroke or dementia. The data was adjusted The study only tracked the trend between artificial sweetener consumers, dementia and stroke, but was unable to prove that drinking artificial drinks was the cause of the diseases.
This modifier can help you understand where you should look to triangulate the info and what questions you should ask. Think about all the questions which suddenly come up as far as the reporting of this study when you read these sentences. Compare this to the tone of the headline. Interesting, huh?
Now you are ready to start researching.
Finally, you’ll review all the information you collected on the topic and start putting together the real story. You’ll find the original source and classify its level of bias, and then you’ll fill in the rest through the other sources you’ve found.
You’ll need to use your critical thinking skills here.
A common mistake people make when trying to triangulate their information is they will find three sources, yet they all come from the same perspective or method.
In theory, this sounds ridiculous. Why would anyone do that? In actuality, it’s pretty easy. You’ve probably done it yourself a thousand times and not really noticed.
Why?
Because of bias.
You have a bias. I have a bias. Your consumer has a bias. We all have a bias! (I feel like Oprah now…. BIAS FOR EVERYONE!!!)
And often that bias is so strong, even when we try to check our sources we default to those which confirm our bias.
I personally follow this process to check myself (before I wreck myself).
It’s really not. It’s more a mindset you take on when you read information. The more you go through the process, the more you’ll slowly start the natural questioning.
Everyone already does this to some extent naturally. This process just helps you be aware of it and add some organization to how you interpret what you read, see, and hear. This applies to news stories, “experts,” crisis, and the like.
Information triangulation will help you make judgments based on a fuller picture story. Judgments that will help your business, your client, and your career.
Laura Petrolino is chief marketing officer for Spin Sucks, an integrated marketing communications firm that provides strategic counsel and professional development for in-house and agency communications teams. She is a weekly contributor for their award-winning blog of the same name. Spin Sucks. Join the Spin Sucks community.