FACT CHECK #P7FU9EPO

WHAT WE FOUND

Multiple high-credibility sources, including a major MIT study published in the journal Science, confirm that falsehoods spread significantly faster than the truth on Twitter 1 5. Specifically, data shows it takes true news stories approximately six times as long as false ones to reach a threshold of 1,500 people 2 3 7. While the top 1% of false stories reached between 1,000 and 100,000 people, true stories rarely reached more than 1,000 2. This disparity is largely attributed to human behavior rather than bots, as false information is often more novel or emotionally provocative 4 8 10. Additional findings indicate that false news is 70% more likely to be retweeted than accurate information 5 6.

SOURCES

1. 1 · news.mit.eduACADEMIC
   Study: On Twitter, false news travels faster than true stories | MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology

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2. 2 · nytimes.comACADEMIC
   It’s True: False News Spreads Faster and Wider. And Humans Are to Blame. - The New York Times

   TIER A

3. 3 · sciencenews.orgACADEMIC
   On Twitter, the lure of fake news is stronger than the truth

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4. 4 · theatlantic.comACADEMIC
   Huge MIT Study of ‘Fake News’: Falsehoods Win on Twitter - The Atlantic

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5. 5 · bbc.comACADEMIC
   Fake news 'travels faster', study finds

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6. 6 · cbsnews.comACADEMIC
   False stories travel faster than the truth on Twitter, study finds - CBS News

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7. 7 · latimes.comACADEMIC
   On Twitter, fake news spreads faster and further than real news — and bots aren't to blame - Los Angeles Times

   TIER A

8. 8 · theguardian.comNEWS
   Scientists prove that truth is no match for fiction on Twitter | X | The Guardian

   TIER A

9. 9 · nbcnews.comWEB
   Want something to go viral? Make it fake news

   TIER B

10. 10 · newscientist.comWEB
    Fake news travels six times faster than the truth on Twitter | New Scientist

    TIER B

THE READING