The Impact of Fake News: Understanding the Consequences and Preventing the Spread || LPUD

Fake news is in no way a good thing; it can lead to all sorts of things such as misinformation, chaos, public panic, distrust, division, and the like, and if not quickly curbed, could lead to what isn't ideal. On most occasions, many people use misinformation as a tool to push a narrative, cause unrest among the citizens, discredit a candidate's political agenda, and, in the end, promote theirs. That's why it's always essential that we vet every piece of information that passes through us before we share it with our network, so we won't unknowingly join the wide spread of fake news.

Nowadays, misinformation spreads like wildfire, and it's quite difficult to distinguish between what is real and what isn't because some people have now gone so far as to package fake news to make it look so real and believe it. Most times, when I receive information of this nature, I tend to vet it by cross-checking other mediums where I can get legit information, and if at the end most of such other platforms also have the information, then I'll have no choice but to believe it.

Another way I easily detect this is when most of the top platforms I look up to to share concrete information use words that indicate that they're not certain of the authenticity of such news, and then I'll know how to act on such. Take, for instance, some of these platforms when they're not certain and don't want to be held responsible for spreading fake news. Most of them then use words such as alleged, supposed, claimed, accused, stated, and the like, so that usually gives me the idea that this isn't entirely legit unless there's video backing from the right person who ought to share such information.

One of the most popular and common mediums via which people share fake news now is through the internet. Using most of these social media platforms, all in the name of content creation, many people now share fake news just so they can gain more views and engagement. Some of them go to the extent of saying things that can jeopardize the reputation of others, and if care isn't taken, most of those victims might never be able to defend themselves unless they use the law and drag perpetrators of fake news to court.

Although I once shared fake news among my network of friends for fun, for instance, during the Ebola outbreak in Nigeria, many news stories were spreading all around town on how to prevent ourselves from getting the disease, and I decided to play a fast one on my friends by telling them that putting salt into our bathing water is one way to prevent the disease, and most of them fell for it.

But after a few days, I had to let them know I'm only joking, especially when I saw one of the people who work at the same factory I work pour almost two handfuls of sand into his bathing water after work. It was surprising, and I had to let him know he needed to stop, because if that had had side effects, it wouldn't be a laughing matter anymore. Gladly, they listened, and that's how it ended. Luckily, none of us had ebola until it was finally curbed.

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LPUD

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It's the fifteenth of July, meaning it's another day to join other hive members on the popular Leo power-up initiatives chaired by the Inleo team. This is an initiative I've vowed to participate in throughout the year, and I'm excited that this month happens to be the seventh for this year, and I'm still actively participating.

_{Screenshot on inleo}
I've seen the team working on loads of new features on the frontend and Leodex, and it's just delightful to see that the face of the project keeps improving by the day. A few days ago, I saw the wide spread of information about a new Kickstarted project called Engage to Earn that's inspired by the tap-to-earn gaming built on Telegram. I believe this is a great avenue to introduce more users and investors to the hive blockchain, and I can't wait to see what this initiative brings to the hive soonest. Kudos to the team for that.

_{Screenshot on inleo}
This month I'm powering up 150 Leo tokens, and before, I'd had 2227 Leo tokens staked, but if the 160 get added to it, that means I now have 2377 Leo tokens staked. That's still good, and hopefully I'll be able to reach more milestones before the year ends.

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First two photos taken and edited on canva.