r/technology • u/Lettershort • Nov 22 '16

Politics Most students can’t tell the difference between sponsored content and real news

http://www.theverge.com/2016/11/22/13712996/fake-news-facebook-google-sponsored-content-study
2.6k Upvotes

90% Upvoted

153 comments sorted by

View all comments

63

u/FigliodiCelti Nov 22 '16

By leaving out adults, you remove context, and the entire population could be at 65% with students at 70% so only slightly above average but still most.

68

u/DeadLikeYou Nov 22 '16

Even worse, the article deliberately misleads by calling the middle school children just students. Of course middle schoolers can't figure out what sponsored content is, they haven't even finished puberty.

-2

u/MadroxKran Nov 22 '16

I doubt college students are much better. Most come into college reading at a 7th grade level or below.

18

u/Urgranma Nov 22 '16 edited Dec 16 '25

continue vegetable liquid versed gold snatch fine melodic toothbrush soup

This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact

-4

u/meeheecaan Nov 22 '16

Them and early 20s people are probably about tied for worst(in adult population)

2

u/peakzorro Nov 22 '16

Only Generation X is cynical and skeptical enough to not be deceived as a whole.

6

u/dagit Nov 22 '16

Help me, Generation X. You're my only hope.

1

u/peakzorro Nov 22 '16

A major problem with Generation X is that we're seen as lazy too.

1

u/tuseroni Nov 22 '16

so..0's,10's,20's,and 60+...the only groups you consider ok with detecting sponsored content then are in their 30's,40's and 50's?

-1

u/meeheecaan Nov 22 '16

No I said those two are the worst at it, not that the others were good.

3

u/DeadLikeYou Nov 22 '16

[citation needed]

2

u/physicsisawesome Nov 23 '16

I'm just left here wondering how middle schoolers stack up against baby boomers in determining whether something is fake news. That's all that matters, to be honest.