Social media sites may spread bad information quickly because people are more likely to trust their friends and the people they “follow”.
A study from BITS-Pilani modelled how misinformation spreads through social networks. Users are less likely to question news shared by people they know, leading to situations like the “swine flu” scare in 2009.
Researchers believe that understanding how these fake news stories manipulate emotion will help social media sites slow or stop the spread of deliberate lies.
Read more at BITS-Pilani