‘NewsGuard’ added to all Richland Library computer to help users vet through ‘fake news’
Columbia,SC (WOLO)— Election Day is November 5th, that just a few weeks away. As many of you prepare to head to the polls to cast your ballots, you may be looking up information on certain candidates, and the platforms they represent.
The Richland Library is trying to make your search for accurate news and information surrounding specific candidates vying for your vote in the 2020 Presidential and local municipal elections as easy as possible.
All locations have added a new resource to all of their public computers called ‘NewsGuard’. The newly implemented resource will assist residents vet through misinformation and ‘fake news’.
The ‘NewsGuard’ browser exstension is designed to use a special color coded system to help users decifer if material they are reading is reliable or not.
Tony Tallont, the Richlnd Library Chief Program and innovation officer says,
“We are in the business of learning, creating and sharing, by connecting people with NewsGuard, we are empowering them with the knowledge that they need to advocate for themselves and fully participate in democracy.”
While perusing websites or social media feeds, ‘NewsGuard’ icons will appear next to the links, indicating the nature of the source. Color codes are as follows:
- Green for accuracy and accountability
- Red for falsehood and unaccountability
- Gray for platforms (like Wikipedia)
- Orange for satire (like The Onion)
Here’s how it works. Library officials say once users log on to look at sites they’ll be able to hover over the icons to read specific details on why each rating was assigned by ‘ NewsGuard ‘analysts, who are trained journalists with varied backgrounds.
Each analyst will seek our certain criteria that will be flagged separating articles as real or rumor. They look for idenifiers like if a website repeatedly publishes false content, regularly corrects or clarifies errors, avoids deceptive headlines, and discloses ownership and management.
