In today’s day and age, it will certainly be difficult for people to survive even a day without the internet. Well, this is because the tech has made almost everything in our daily lives easier and faster. While the internet sure does makes our lives a lot easier and simpler, it does come with a few cavities, with the quick and mass spread of misinformation of the social media being one of the most primary disadvantages.
The reason behind the spread of misinformation on the internet being so easier is the numerous social networks which are home to a massive percentage of all internet users. This misinformation takes place, when internet users having access to a platform where they can convey their message and content to such a large audience, without having much restrictions. This gives social media users and even sometimes people that want to spread propaganda, the power to convey wrong messages and information. A recent example of this is when the COVID 19 virus came in and destroyed the regularity of life and killed a large amount of people. While the virus continued to cause a large amount of causalities, people on social media sites continued to spread wrong figures, information, precautions and conspiracy about vaccines. This not only made people unaware about the situation but also instilled in them a fear of the COVID 19 virus and its vaccine. After the COVID 19 situation got a bit better, several data analysts conducted surveys about the misinformation on the internet and its effect on people. The results that came in were quite shocking and proved the devastating effects that misinformation through internet can have.
This large amount of misinformation being spread made many adults in the US think that the government should intervene and regulate the misinformation being spread on these platforms. Up until now the government have only given out statements blaming the companies behind these platforms saying that they should further instate their misinformation rules.
Recently a survey on the topic was conducted amongst 11,178 adults living in the US. The survey revealed that almost 48% of the 11,178 adults thought that the government should step in and formulate steps to restrict the spread of fake information. The adults also agreed that even if the stopping of misinformation came with the price of freedom of posting, they are ready to accept it. This result was a 10% jump from the last time this survey was taken in 2018.
In 2018 around 58% of the respondents opposed the idea of government stepping in, whereas in 2021 only 50% did so, this is alarming for social media companies since if the percentage of people opposing the idea decreases even a little, it might lead to the government stepping in and changing their platform rules.
There is now a spilt belief amongst the US nationals, where half of them think that the government should step in and change the rules whereas the other half thinks otherwise. You might also want to drop down your take on this in the comment box below.
Read next: Geofence Warrants Touch An All Time High As Law Enforcement Agencies Keep On Asking Google For Users Data
The reason behind the spread of misinformation on the internet being so easier is the numerous social networks which are home to a massive percentage of all internet users. This misinformation takes place, when internet users having access to a platform where they can convey their message and content to such a large audience, without having much restrictions. This gives social media users and even sometimes people that want to spread propaganda, the power to convey wrong messages and information. A recent example of this is when the COVID 19 virus came in and destroyed the regularity of life and killed a large amount of people. While the virus continued to cause a large amount of causalities, people on social media sites continued to spread wrong figures, information, precautions and conspiracy about vaccines. This not only made people unaware about the situation but also instilled in them a fear of the COVID 19 virus and its vaccine. After the COVID 19 situation got a bit better, several data analysts conducted surveys about the misinformation on the internet and its effect on people. The results that came in were quite shocking and proved the devastating effects that misinformation through internet can have.
This large amount of misinformation being spread made many adults in the US think that the government should intervene and regulate the misinformation being spread on these platforms. Up until now the government have only given out statements blaming the companies behind these platforms saying that they should further instate their misinformation rules.
Recently a survey on the topic was conducted amongst 11,178 adults living in the US. The survey revealed that almost 48% of the 11,178 adults thought that the government should step in and formulate steps to restrict the spread of fake information. The adults also agreed that even if the stopping of misinformation came with the price of freedom of posting, they are ready to accept it. This result was a 10% jump from the last time this survey was taken in 2018.
In 2018 around 58% of the respondents opposed the idea of government stepping in, whereas in 2021 only 50% did so, this is alarming for social media companies since if the percentage of people opposing the idea decreases even a little, it might lead to the government stepping in and changing their platform rules.
There is now a spilt belief amongst the US nationals, where half of them think that the government should step in and change the rules whereas the other half thinks otherwise. You might also want to drop down your take on this in the comment box below.
Read next: Geofence Warrants Touch An All Time High As Law Enforcement Agencies Keep On Asking Google For Users Data
