With immeasurable effects, the advent of fake news has caused major impacts on society in many different aspects. This is because it spreads much more quickly than true information: the reach of fake news is 70% faster, according to data from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
In the spotlight since 2016, 'fake news' gained popularity following the US elections that saw Donald Trump win. Since then, the term has been widely used in Brazil in different contexts. During the 2018 elections, more than two-thirds of Brazilians said they had received fake news via WhatsApp during the election campaign. As for sharing, 14% said they had already shared false information related to political content. The data is part of a survey released during the Brazil UF Forum, at the London School of Economics.
The report Online Disinformation and Elections in Brazil vietnam mobile database showed that, in 2020, on the eve of the municipal elections, fake news about the electoral system in Brazil generated more engagement than news from reliable sources, such as the illegitimate circulation of successful hacker attacks on Brazilian ballot boxes. The evolution of the practice of deepfakes and shallowfakes – considered to be more elaborate and sophisticated versions of fake news – is also a reality.
However, the negative effects of the spread of fake news are not restricted to the political arena. The coronavirus pandemic has also revealed alarming scenarios regarding misinformation. According to a study conducted by Avaaz , 110 million people believe in at least one fake news story about Covid-19 in Brazil – the equivalent of seven out of every 10 Brazilians. A total of 637 publications related to the topic, published between December 2019 and November 2020, were analyzed, of which 83% were fake. In a ranking of the 52 countries most affected by fake news about vaccines and coronavirus, Brazil ranks third, behind only the United States and India.
Despite access to information in digital environments, the lack of basic education still contributes strongly to a more forceful perspective in the fight against fake news : 62% of Brazilians are unable to recognize fake news, according to a study developed by Kaspersky . Thus, lack of knowledge, as well as disinformation, directly affect decision-making, incite hate speech, increase violence and have major consequences in political, economic, social, personal and psychological aspects. For this reason, the debate on the regulation of fake news is increasingly necessary.