Disinformation in the Age of Confirmation Bias

Politicians Have Roped Us into Their Ideological Battles

Newsreel Asia Insight #18
Oct. 19, 2023

While we frequently scrutinise the creators of fake news and deepfake videos, we seldom question why consumers readily accept disinformation without verifying its accuracy. Evidently, the creators recognise that “confirmation bias” has likely reached unprecedented levels in recent years.

Confirmation bias is the tendency to favour information that confirms one’s existing beliefs or opinions. People with this bias may seek out, interpret, or remember information in a way that validates their preconceptions, while ignoring or dismissing evidence that challenges them.

Al Jazeera recently reported that following Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel, a surge of disinformation emerged on social media, much of it originating from Right-leaning accounts in India. Fabricated stories included claims of Hamas kidnapping a Jewish baby and executing a young boy.

Verified accounts amplified these false reports, making them go viral, according to the report, which said BOOM, an Indian fact-checking service, identified several verified Indian users leading this disinformation campaign, primarily targeting Palestine negatively while supporting Israel.

One such account falsely claimed a video showed young girls kidnapped by a Palestinian fighter, when it likely depicted a school trip to Jerusalem. Despite its dubious nature, the video received thousands of retweets and garnered at least 6 million impressions. Most accounts sharing the video were based in India.

While various factors make people susceptible to confirmation bias, the fear of being wrong is particularly salient today. Acknowledging a mistaken belief is emotionally taxing, prompting individuals to hold onto their preconceived notions even when faced with persuasive counterarguments.

In a nation sharply divided along ideological lines, such an admission becomes exponentially more uncomfortable. We’ve debated hotly with friends and family, turning political disagreements into personal rifts. The struggle between the political Left and Right is no longer confined to electoral wins or losses; it has seeped into our social fabric, as politicians have skilfully roped us into their battles for self-interest.

The fear amplifies our vulnerability to confirmation bias, making us more resistant to changing our views, irrespective of the facts presented.

In India, media outlets capitalise on the ideological divide, catering specifically to their audience’s existing beliefs and biases. Rather than serving as platforms for objective news and balanced perspectives, these outlets often function as echo chambers.

The goal for many news consumers is perhaps no longer to be informed; instead, news has become ammunition for debates, a tool to prove the other side wrong. These news consumers no longer view consume news with an open mind.

Fake news stories also often use emotional appeals like outrage, fear or excitement to engage readers. Such emotions can strongly incentivise content sharing. When people circulate emotionally charged fake news, they often gain social validation through likes, comments or shares. This positive feedback acts as reinforcement, encouraging further dissemination of similar content.

As multiple state elections and the general election approach, the prevalence of fake news is expected to escalate.

An op-ed published in The Atlantic magazine prior to the 2019 general election observed that, unlike in the United States where foreign-backed misinformation campaigns have been the focal point, the fake news circulating in India is primarily domestically produced.

“Many of India’s misinformation campaigns are developed and run by political parties with nationwide cyberarmies; they target not only political opponents, but also religious minorities and dissenting individuals, with propaganda rooted in domestic divisions and prejudices,” it read. “The consequences of such targeted misinformation are extreme, from death threats to actual murders—in the past year, more than two dozen people have been lynched by mobs spurred by nothing more than rumors sent over WhatsApp.”

Combatting fake news may be challenging, but reducing its impact is possible.

Finland has incorporated media literacy into its curriculum to teach students to identify reliable sources, fact-check information and understand the impact of fake news. Sweden’s Media Council runs a media literacy project aimed at high school students, focusing on the critical evaluation of news and information sources. Germany has enforced the Network Enforcement Act, requiring social media platforms to remove hate speech and fake news within 24 hours of being notified, or face hefty fines.

However, in India, initiatives to combat fake news seem to be geared more towards media censorship than an actual clampdown on disinformation.