With An Election On The Horizon, Older Adults Get Help Spotting Fake News


Senior centers in Maryland are offering media literacy courses to discuss fact-checking and how to spot fake news stories online. A recent study by researchers at Princeton and NYU found that Facebook users over 65 are seven times more likely to post articles from fake news websites as are adults under 29, so digital literacy classes provide tools to help identify fake news sites. Many participants report feeling empowered by the class because they did not grow up online. Despite the interest, these courses are more difficult to integrate widely in senior centers than they would be in a school setting.

Related Stories