Second Source
Would you believe it?
12 quick calls on headlines, a mate’s messages and news accounts. Decide what to trust and what needs checking.
Can you trust it?
In Paris, during the riots of 2023, clips of zoo animals ‘on the loose’ got millions of views. The zebra footage was actually from a circus escape in 2020.
Zoo animals are loose on the streets of Paris.
Viral posts, July 2023
A zebra escaped from a circus in a suburb of Paris.
Le Parisien, April 2020
The clip was real. The story around it wasn’t. It still reached millions of people. So before you believe something or share it, ask one question: where did this actually come from, and have I looked there?
Odd isn’t the tell
Real stories can be strange, so how weird it sounds tells you nothing. Look at the name at the top instead.
Have you ever heard of that news site? Anyone can set up a site and call it news. If you don’t know the name, look for the story on a news site you do know, and go there yourself. If it’s only on the site you’ve never heard of, it isn’t confirmed, so don’t pass it on. A name you know isn’t proof either, because anyone can make a card: check the story is really there, then the date and what it actually says.
Source, or repeating?
Someone telling you about their own life is the source. There’s nothing to look up. Take it as what they’re telling you, or ask them more. Same with a creator filming their own day.
Apparently..., everyone’s saying..., I read somewhere... That’s someone passing it on, and so is a creator reacting to a screenshot. It might be true, but they only heard it from somewhere else, and they may not know where. Lots of views don’t change that: the feed shows you what kept people watching, not what somebody checked.
Check it at the place it would come from: the school’s website, the club’s official page, GOV.UK or the NHS.
Evidence, not decoration
A tick doesn’t prove a post is true. On some platforms a tick can be bought, and anyone can put Official in a profile name.
Look at what the account has actually done. How long has it been posting? Does it post its own content, or mostly repost other people? Does it link to an official website, and does that website link back? A fake can link to the real site, but the real site won’t link to a fake. That tells you who the account is, not that every post is right.
A bio that says DM for the real story is a warning. Real news is posted where anyone can read it and check it. Don’t message the account. Look on the outlet’s own site.
The habit Passing on a headline, a clip or something someone heard? Go to where it came from, read it and check the date before you share.
Review your answers