Titled Nostradamus and India, Francois Gautier translated the Latin and French prediction of Nostradamus into English and published it on his site. It was revealed that the seer of 16th century France, Nostradamus, predicted the political landscape of contemporary India, hailing Narendus (Modi) as the Supreme Leader of India. Published by Times of India (TOI) and soon after retracted, this publication went on to do the rounds in social media. As with any fake story, there were many who believed it to be true. However if one were to compare the original text with the quotes on Francois Gautier’s blog, you could see the alterations.
That is simply one example of the absurd fake stories that have gone viral over the past few years. With the amount of content generated daily, and the internet and social media a source of news, it sometimes becomes hard to tell what is true and what is not.
Here are five indications we believe can tell you whether the news is reliable or not:
1. Where does it come from?
Even a prominent newspaper like TOI has made mistakes as stated above. The original piece titled ‘Nostradamus and India’ was published on 28th March, 2017 and removed but a screenshot can be found here. Two days later it was republished with a disclaimer.
If a publication is known for often dropping the ball then certainly be sure to not believe everything they say. There are also sites that are famous for solely publishing fake news that can be satirical in nature. Beware of those too. For example, the infamous Paul Horner‘s abcnews.com.co., theonion.com, nationalreport.net.
It is important not to take any news you read online or otherwise at face value. What do the other major publications have to say about the story? Study carefully the stories surrounding the topic for any plot holes, or biases that could be misrepresenting or exaggerating the story.
2. Is social media your source for news?
This is a big no-no. A lot of news that is circulated on social media platforms are hoaxes. Has this news appeared on any credible news platform?
If not, be wary. Forwarded messages, dramatic language, articles with spelling and grammatical errors are often fake news too.
Chain-mails and forwarded messages that promise an offer upon circulating it to ‘x’ number of people can never be trusted.
3. Fact or Fiction? Or a bit of both?
A balance between fact and fiction can produce an often believable story. Throw in known sources like the UN or the WHO, or bring in a celebrity’s name, and the stories are often circulated as true before they are exposed as fake news.
Celebrity deaths are one of the most common hoaxes in the field of fake news.
4. References
Hyperlinks, quotes, citations are generally present in news stories and if not, that usually means there’s no credibility to the article that you’re reading. Are the sources mentioned? If the article says so and so has said this, Google it and see if such a person with such a designation/ from such an organization exists. If not, you know it’s fake.
5. What do the authorities say?
Due to the mass production of fake news, there are many sites that debunk fake stories and fact-check news. For example, sites like snopes.com, politifact.com, factcheck.org. Once you realize a story is fake, it’s always good to report it so that it’ll be taken down.
It’s essential to make sure that the news you’re receiving and sharing is accurate. Therefore, keep in mind not to immediately believe everything that you’ve read online. As they say, better safe than sorry.