News-Finds-Me, Knowledge, and Extremism in the Dissemination of Misinformation

• In Event: The Spread and Correction of Misinformation and Disinformation

Abstract

The dissemination of false information shared intentionally or inadvertently in digital spaces has emerged as a democratically dysfunctional participatory practice. While studies have delved into the networks and mechanisms driving fake news dissemination, limited attention has been devoted to some individual factors influencing amplification on social media. The paper focuses on understanding individual characteristics, such as the quality of news consumption experience, political knowledge, and ideological extremism, that may heighten the likelihood of Italian citizens inadvertently propagating fake news on social media and instant messaging services.

We focus in the first place on individuals' perception of being well-informed about public interest issues, even without actively seeking news, the so-called News-Finds-Me Perception (NFMP) (Gil de Zúñiga et al., 2017). NFMP involves two key dimensions: "being informed perception" and "peer reliance". Research suggests that high NFMP levels increase the likelihood of deeming news accurate, potentially reducing fact-checking efforts (Sundar, 2016). For instance, Diehl and Lee (2022) found a correlation between high NFMP and a tendency to assess fake news as credible. Secondly, we consider levels of political knowledge. Studies have indicated a positive relationship between knowledge of contentious issues and the ability to discern problematic information (Lutzke et al., 2019; Montagni et al., 2021; Pennycook et al., 2020). Finally, we consider ideological extremism. We know from the literature that Individual political ideologies influence information processing. Research shows that individuals with politically solid identities are more likely to believe and share news aligning with their ideologies, even if false (Hanitzsch et al., 2018; Weeks & Garrett, 2014).

We thus formulate the following hypotheses and research question:
H1: News-Finds-Me Perception is positively associated with a higher probability of sharing misinformation on social media/instant messaging apps.
H2: Political knowledge is negatively associated with a higher probability of sharing misinformation on social media/instant messaging apps.
RQ1: Does political extremism moderate the effects of NFMP and political knowledge on the probability of sharing misinformation on social media/instant messaging apps?

We address these puzzles in a study based on survey data collected in January 2023 with a representative sample (based on sociodemographic quota) of Italian adults (N=4547) from a web panel. Findings confirm our hypothesis that those who rely heavily on social media affordances and peers for news are more prone to share false information. We also find support for our second hypothesis, since higher political knowledge is associated with a lower likelihood of disseminating false news. This aligns with previous studies suggesting that being well-informed about public events can help individuals navigate complex news environments and reduce the chances of spreading problematic news. The study also confirms a trend observed in prior research in the USA and in other contexts: individuals with far-right political leanings are more likely to share misinformation than those with less extreme positions. Finally, while we do not find any significant interaction between NFMP and extremism in predicting the likelihood of sharing fake news, we observe an interesting interaction between knowledge and extremism. Among individuals with low political knowledge, left-wing extremists are more likely to share misinformation compared to non-extremists. Conversely, no significant difference is observed between right-wing extremists and non-extremists. This implies that a lack of political awareness affects different ideological groups in distinct ways. Furthermore, the inhibitory effect of political knowledge on unintentional misinformation sharing is more pronounced in left-wing extremists than in their right-wing counterparts. This suggests that being well-versed in contemporary politics has a more substantial impact on reducing misinformation sharing among left-wing extremist individuals. Interpretations and implications of these findings, especially with reference to the “ideological asymmetries” observed, are discussed.

Authors

• Augusto Valeriani, Università di Bologna

• Laura Iannelli, University of Sassari

• Giada Marino