Americans Think Fake News Has an Impact

Fake news are in the headlines: On his first press conference as incoming U.S. President, Donald Trump criticized media outlets for spreading unsubstantiated reports on Russia having allegedly compiled dossiers about him. All the while, Americans actually do think that so-called fake news has the potential to cause confusion, according to data provided by Pew Research Center.

Trump has had his own brushes with distorted information being spread by a member of his campaign, in connection with events dubbed "Pizzagate". He also took quite a while to distance himself from the ridiculous “Birther” conspiracy theory, which states that outgoing President Barack Obama isn’t an U.S. citizen by birth.