The Rise of Fake News: How Trust in Media is Being Rewritten

 Over the past decade, the term “fake news” has evolved from a description of online hoaxes to a political weapon used to undermine media credibility. My goal with this project was to explore how the phrase has transformed public trust in journalism and the way political figures manipulate it for power. Through this timeline-based infographic, I examined the social, technological, and cultural shifts that allowed misinformation to thrive in the digital age. I learned that “fake news” is not a single phenomenon—it includes deliberate disinformation, unintentional misinformation, and misunderstood satire. The rise of social media platforms has made it easy for false narratives to go viral, especially during moments of crisis like the 2016 election and the COVID-19 pandemic. President Donald Trump’s repeated use of the term gave it political power, allowing other global leaders to follow suit. This politicization has deepened polarization and made Americans more skeptical of fact-based reporting. The course themes of media influence and democratic impact are clearly visible in this topic. I realized that the danger of fake news isn't just that it's false, it's that it creates confusion, erodes civic trust, and makes productive public discourse harder. As AI and algorithms further complicate truth, media literacy is more critical than ever.

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