Glossary

Attacking the person making an argument rather than addressing the argument itself.

A set of rules that platforms use to decide what content to show you, often optimizing for engagement.

Over-relying on the first piece of information encountered when making decisions.

Using an authority figure's opinion as evidence, even when they're not an expert on that topic.

Making a fake grassroots movement so that an opinion looks like it comes from ordinary people, when it is actually manufactured by organised campaigns.

Judging probability based on how easily examples come to mind, rather than actual statistics.

The tendency to adopt beliefs or behaviors because many others do. 'If everyone believes it, it must be true.'

The tendency to accept vague, general personality descriptions as uniquely applicable to ourselves.

Automated social media accounts that can spread content at scale, often used to amplify misinformation.

Sensational headlines designed to attract clicks, often exaggerating or misrepresenting the actual content.

Mental shortcuts that can lead to judgment errors.

The tendency to search for, interpret, and remember information that confirms our pre-existing beliefs.

A group that doesn't receive the treatment being tested, used to check whether other phenomena or random effects could be misleading the research.

Just because two things happen together doesn't mean one causes the other. There may be no connection at all.

Correcting false information after it has spread. Less effective than prebunking because first impressions persist.

AI-generated media (video, audio, images) that makes people appear to say or do things they never did.

Human rights applied to the digital world.

False information deliberately created and spread to deceive people. The creator knows it's false.

A test in which neither the participants nor the researchers know who is receiving the treatment, so that neither can influence the result.

When people with limited knowledge overestimate their expertise, while experts underestimate theirs.

An environment where people only encounter opinions similar to their own, reinforcing existing beliefs.

The process of verifying claims by consulting reliable sources, checking evidence, and assessing context.

Fabricated stories designed to look like legitimate news. Often created for profit or political influence.

Presenting only two options when more exist. 'You're either with us or against us.'

Algorithmic personalization that shows users content they're likely to agree with, limiting exposure to diverse views.

Acronym for the five most common techniques used to deny or distort scientific evidence: Fake experts, Logical fallacies, Impossible expectations, Cherry picking, Conspiracy theories.

The right to express opinions without censorship.

The more we're exposed to information, the more likely we are to believe it's true, regardless of its accuracy.

The tendency to favor members of one's own group (in-group) over members of other groups (out-group).

Synonym for prebunking. Exposing people to a weakened version of a manipulation technique to 'immunize' them against misinformation.

Opening new tabs to verify a source's credibility before reading their content in depth.

An error in reasoning that undermines the logic of an argument. May sound convincing but doesn't prove the point.

True information shared with intent to cause harm, often by taking it out of context or revealing private information.

The ability to analyze and evaluate media.

False or inaccurate information spread without intent to deceive. The person sharing it believes it to be true.

The tendency to perceive members of other groups as more similar to each other than they actually are. 'They're all the same.'

The check a study goes through before publication, when other researchers in the field look for errors. It doesn't guarantee the study is right, only that it has been examined.

Preventive technique that exposes people to manipulation tactics before they encounter misinformation, building resistance.

Information, especially biased or misleading, used to promote a political cause or point of view.

Claims that sound scientific but have no real evidence behind them. Literally, "false science" (from Greek pseudo, "false").

Using tools to find the original source and context of an image by searching with the image itself.

Stop, Investigate the source, Find better coverage, Trace claims to original context. A quick verification technique.

Assessing the credibility of an information source.

Misrepresenting someone's argument to make it easier to attack, rather than addressing their actual position.

Focusing on successes while overlooking failures, leading to false conclusions about what causes success.

Someone who deliberately posts inflammatory content to provoke reactions and derail conversations.

Groups that create fake accounts to spread disinformation.

A correction technique that frames a false claim between two true statements: Truth → Lie → Truth. More effective than repeating the myth.