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Concerns around the proliferation of disinformation and so-called聽fake news have gained new urgency with the World Health Organization declaring an 鈥渋nfodemic鈥� around COVID-19. Here are some key questions to consider while reading news or social media posts.

What is misinformation vs. disinformation?

Misinformation is information that is misleading or wrong, but not intentionally. It includes everything from a factoid your friend reposted on Facebook to assertions made by officials or, yes, even journalists.

Disinformation is more deliberate and is distributed with the intent to confuse, disturb, or provoke. It also includes plausible information shared through devious means, such as a fake Twitter account; done en masse, this can create a skewed impression of popular opinion. A particularly deceptive form of disinformation are 鈥渄eepfake鈥� videos, with imperceptible alterations in the footage making it appear that someone said or did something that he or she never said or did.

Be particularly on guard against misinformation and disinformation during crises, which provide fertile ground for exploiting fear, anger, and other emotions.聽

How can I tell which news sources are credible?

Here are a few points to consider:

Standards:聽What information does this outlet provide about who they are, their mission, and their fact-checking process or standards?

Show me the money:聽Who is paying for their work, and why? Is this news outlet鈥檚 business model dependent to some degree on generating 鈥渃licks鈥�? If so, how might that have influenced this story?

Track record: Does this outlet publish corrections to errors in stories, indicating transparency and accountability? Have they been recognized for journalistic excellence?

None of these methods are fool-proof, but together they will provide a more informed understanding of the sources.

How can I fact-check a particular claim?

Fact-checking sites are cropping up all over the internet to help you do just this. Duke University鈥檚 Reporters鈥� Lab, run by the creator of PolitiFact, has compiled a聽聽of such sites. Their database includes more than 237 fact-checkers in nearly 80 countries 鈥� a聽聽in less than a year. Some of these specialize in exposing online hoaxes and disinformation.

You can go directly to one of these sites and search for the claim you鈥檙e researching, or type the claim into Google along with the name of a recommended site, to see if any of them have looked into it. If you don鈥檛 see the claim you鈥檙e researching on your preferred fact-checking site, look for a place to submit a claim for investigation, such as these pages on聽听补苍诲听.

If it鈥檚 a photo you鈥檙e trying to verify, a on Google can help to pinpoint its origin.聽Sometimes photos are reposted out of context, or with false captions about the year, place, and event at which they were taken.

What about bias?

As the media has become more polarized, more bias has seeped into the news 鈥撀燽ut it has also become easier to spot. Here are some questions to ask yourself as you read an article:

Angle:聽What discrete aspect of this topic does this article attempt to address, and what does that say about the news organization鈥檚 priorities and/or worldview?

厂肠辞辫别:听Does this do a reasonable job of addressing all relevant points given the space allotted? What is the timeframe, geographical reach, and diversity of people included in terms of age, gender, race, cultural background, professional expertise, political views, etc.?

厂辞耻谤肠别蝉:听Who are the sources, what is their expertise, and how does their background and work inform their approach to this topic? What is the relative emphasis placed on each source? Who is quoted most, first, and last?

础耻迟丑辞谤:听Who is the author? What did they study, and where? What do they normally write about? What do they post on Twitter? Do they have any affiliations (past or present) that might affect how they approach this topic?

Yourself:聽This might be the hardest of all! If you鈥檙e reading a map and want to follow the blue trail, but don鈥檛 realize you鈥檙e wearing red-tinted glasses, you might end up following the purple trail without realizing it. So it鈥檚 worth asking: What is coloring the way I see this news source, issue, and/or article?

Where can I find more resources on media literacy?

Oxford Internet Institute鈥檚聽Computational Propaganda offers a host of resources on disinformation designed for civil society groups, but relevant to individuals as well.

Data & Society, an independent nonprofit, explains the phenomena of misinformation and disinformation in great depth in聽.

罢丑别听European Journalism Centre聽just put out a new edition of its聽聽that addresses disinformation and media manipulation.

鲍狈贰厂颁翱听compiled a聽聽for teaching about journalism, fake news, and disinformation. It鈥檚 geared toward educators, but is a good template for self-instruction as well. 罢丑别听聽and the聽聽are also great resources for teachers.

罢丑别听Enoch Free Pratt Library聽in Maryland has put together聽聽for spotting fake news.

There are also聽online courses, such as the Great Courses鈥� 鈥�,鈥� offered in partnership with IREX.

Once you feel like you鈥檙e getting the hang of media literacy, you can test yourself with this fun online game, 鈥�,鈥� developed by聽American University Game Lab聽to see if you can tell the difference between real and fake news.

Editor鈥檚 note: The original version of this story misidentified the creators of Verification Handbook and Factitious. They are聽the European Journalism Centre and聽American University Game Lab, respectively.