Viral Doesn't Make it a True Story

In journalism today it is important to understand that viral stories can be false. I have noticed this atmosphere on Facebook that breeds falsified or completely untrue news articles. Facebook has also been a platform in which its' users can share conspiracy theories and extreme viewpoints about politics or current news stories. I remember when I just started high school and Facebook would have viral photos of articles propagating this idea that mass shootings and major disasters were fake just to push a political agenda. There were articles posted that came up with an idea that the Boston shooting's or shootings that occurred at schools were fake just to push a political agenda from people who were against guns.

You can see from this article is discusses how a school shooting occurred and viral articles on Facebook https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/22/florida-school-shooting-highlights-facebook-fake-news-problem.html. The article usually focuses on this idea that the people affected in these shootings are paid actors and that a lot of them are used in the same school shootings. They also try to portray the story as if these families aren't real and that there is no proof that these are real people.

As you can see from this news article. Sandy Hook is a major shooting that occurred in which Facebook began posting viral articles suggesting the shooting was a complete hoax created to push a political agenda.

I think the important news to note on the Internet and specifically, Facebook is that just because a video or article is viral does not make it true. There are many conspiracy theories out there and with social media platforms like Facebook, they can be shared very easily and quickly. These stories can look appealing or true to its' viewers because they are seeing that it is shared many times or it has a lot of people who believe it. When a lot of people share or stand behind a story then it can feel more true to its' audience.

In this article, you can read the way in which families from the Sandy Hook school shooting were affected by these viral stories shared on Facebook https://www.courant.com/nation-world/hc-ap-newtown-facebook-hoax-20180725-story.html. These families were objectified by these viral conspiracy theories that were shared. Just because a story has been shared many times does not make it true. Make sure to do your own research and understand the news that you are consuming. Most importantly, do not get your news from social media. Go to credible unbiased sources to gain knowledge on local, national, and world news.