2024/08/07 by Sacha Altay, Benjamin Lyons, Ariana Modirrousta-Galian · 1 voice · 2 citations
Physics and Astronomy · Social Sciences · #Misinformation and Its Impacts #Opinion Dynamics and Social Influence #Public Relations and Crisis Communication
paper · pdf · doi:10.1080/15205436.2024.2382776
openalex publication_date 2024/08/07 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
In two online experiments (N = 2,735), we investigated whether forced exposure to high proportions of false news could have deleterious effects by sowing confusion and fueling distrust in news. In a between-subjects design where U.S. participants rated the accuracy of true and false news, we manipulated the proportions of false news headlines participants were exposed to (17%, 33%, 50%, 66%, and 83%). We found that exposure to higher proportions of false news decreased trust in the news but did not affect participants’ perceived accuracy of news headlines. While higher proportions of false news had no effect on participants’ overall ability to discern between true and false news, they made participants more overconfident in their discernment ability. Therefore, exposure to false news may have deleterious effects not by increasing belief in falsehoods, but by fueling overconfidence and eroding trust in the news. Although we are only able to shed light on one causal pathway, from news environment to attitudes, this can help us better understand the effects of external or supply-side changes in news quality.