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Gavril Ducu 🇷🇴🇩🇪🇺🇲🇳🇱🇪🇺@🇺🇦 Profile picture
@DucuGavril
Jun 29 • 11 tweets • 2 min read • Read on X
Why do people consume fake news?

It’s not just ignorance.
It’s not just tech.

It’s identity.
Emotion.
Repetition.

And trust—or the collapse of it.

This thread recaps key findings from Gradim & Amaral (2020). Image
Our source:

Anabela Gradim & Inês Amaral (2020)
Understanding Fake News Consumption: A Review
Published in Social Sciences (MDPI)

doi.org/10.3390/socsci…Image
Fake news isn’t new.

It has adapted to every major media shift—print, radio, TV, internet.

What’s new is the scale, speed, and personalization of digital misinformation.
Key takeaway #1: It’s not about stupidity.

Belief in fake news is driven by:

Motivated reasoning
Confirmation bias
Identity protection

Smart people are just better at defending bad ideas.
Key takeaway #2: Trust collapse is the fuel.

When people stop trusting institutions—media, government, science—they turn to whatever affirms their worldview.

Fake news becomes a form of control in a chaotic world.
Key takeaway #3: Emotion drives virality.

Fake news spreads because it triggers:

Anger
Fear
Outrage
Truth moves slowly.

Emotion travels fast.
Key takeaway #4: Education helps—but isn’t enough.

Media literacy improves awareness.

But it doesn’t override emotion or tribal loyalty.

Critical thinking must be paired with critical feeling.
Key takeaway #5: Repetition builds belief.

The more familiar a lie becomes, the more plausible it feels.

We don’t need to be persuaded—just exposed.

Again.

And again.
Key takeaway #6: The boundaries are blurring.

People struggle to distinguish:

Fake news
Biased framing
Satire
Opinion

Without clear categories, misinformation becomes normalized.
Final thought:

We don’t defeat fake news with facts alone.

We need:

Emotional awareness
Media humility
Rebuilt trust

And systems that value reflection over reaction

#FakeNews #MediaLiteracy
If you find this series useful and want to support more independent educational content on disinformation, you can do that here:



Every share or sip helps.

#FakeNews #MediaLiteracybuymeacoffee.com/nafoforum

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More from @DucuGavril

Gavril Ducu 🇷🇴🇩🇪🇺🇲🇳🇱🇪🇺@🇺🇦 Profile picture
Jun 29
The line between fake, biased, and satirical is blurring.

Not all misinformation is created equal.

But many people can’t—or don’t—tell the difference.

This thread explains how the boundaries have broken down, and why that matters. Image
Gradim & Amaral (2020) identify a growing problem:

Most users don’t distinguish between:

Intentionally false news
Satire or parody
Opinion masquerading as fact
Heavily biased or emotionally charged reporting

To the user, it all feels like “news.”
Why is this happening?

Because the signals we once relied on—headlines, formats, tone, bylines—have been flattened.

A tweet looks like a headline.
A meme looks like a statement.
An op-ed gets quoted like a report.

The cues are broken.
Read 10 tweets
Gavril Ducu 🇷🇴🇩🇪🇺🇲🇳🇱🇪🇺@🇺🇦 Profile picture
Jun 29
Education helps—but not in the way you think.

You can be highly educated.
You can know how media works.

And still fall for fake news.

This thread unpacks why knowledge alone isn’t protection. Image
Gradim & Amaral (2020) review the research:

Media literacy improves our ability to analyze content.

But it doesn’t automatically override emotional reasoning or identity bias.

It helps—but it’s not flawless armor.
In fact, more educated people can be more skilled at justifying their own biases.

They:

Argue more effectively for their side
Dismiss opposing facts more confidently
Are less likely to admit uncertainty

Cognition becomes a tool of rationalization.
Read 10 tweets
Gavril Ducu 🇷🇴🇩🇪🇺🇲🇳🇱🇪🇺@🇺🇦 Profile picture
Jun 29
Fake news isn’t about stupidity.

It’s about psychology.

And until we understand that, we’ll keep blaming the wrong people—while the lies keep spreading.

This thread explains why intelligence doesn’t protect you from misinformation. Image
Gradim & Amaral (2020) summarize a key finding across studies:

People believe fake news not because they’re ignorant—but because it confirms what they already feel, fear, or want to believe.

It’s not a flaw in knowledge.

It’s a feature of identity.
This is called motivated reasoning.

We’re not neutral fact-processors.

We’re identity-defenders.

We accept what supports our worldview—and reject what threatens it.

Truth becomes tribal.
Read 10 tweets
Gavril Ducu 🇷🇴🇩🇪🇺🇲🇳🇱🇪🇺@🇺🇦 Profile picture
Jun 24
“Fake news is more than falsehood. It’s a weapon.”

Fake news isn’t just misleading. It’s strategic.

It’s deployed to shape narratives, sow distrust, and fracture societies.

🧵This thread explains how fake news works as an informational weapon.

#FakeNews #MediaLiteracy
According to Hagiu & Bortoș (2021):

Fake news often isn't random.

It’s used deliberately—to undermine trust, polarize debate, and weaken institutions.

That makes it more than just bad info.

It’s a tool of influence.
Think of how it's used:

🔸 Discredit political opponents
🔸 Create confusion during elections
🔸 Undermine science or health policy
🔸 Amplify outrage and division

It doesn't aim to persuade.

It aims to destabilize.
Read 9 tweets
Gavril Ducu 🇷🇴🇩🇪🇺🇲🇳🇱🇪🇺@🇺🇦 Profile picture
Jun 24
“Why fake news needs images.”

Fake news isn’t just told.
It’s shown.

And that visual layer isn’t decoration—it’s persuasion.

🧵This thread breaks down why nearly all fake news stories rely on photos and video to do the heavy lifting.

#FakeNews #MediaLiteracy
In the 2023 study by Karina Stasiuk-Krajewska:

🔹 93% of fake news stories used photos or video
🔹 Only 7% used text alone
🔹 Many combined multiple formats

The message is clear:
Disinformation works best when it’s seen.
Why images?

Because we trust what we see.

🔹 A photo feels like proof
🔹 A video feels like reality
🔹 A screenshot feels like evidence

Even when it’s out of context—or completely false.
Read 8 tweets
Gavril Ducu 🇷🇴🇩🇪🇺🇲🇳🇱🇪🇺@🇺🇦 Profile picture
Jun 24
“The illusion of objectivity.”

Fake news doesn’t just lie.
It looks like it’s telling the truth.

🧵This thread breaks down how disinformation uses numbers, structure, and style to feel credible—without actually being honest.

#FakeNews #MediaLiteracy
The study by Karina Stasiuk-Krajewska (2023) found:

🔹 Nearly 70% of fake news posts included numbers
🔹 Many mimicked traditional journalistic structure
🔹 Most avoided overt emotion

Why?

To appear neutral, informed, reliable.
Numbers are especially powerful.

They signal expertise.
They feel precise—even if they're fake or misleading.

A number like “63% of doctors disagree” triggers:

“This must be backed by data.”
“They did their research.”

Even if they didn’t.
Read 8 tweets

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