Hi everyone! Welcome to my blog post four. For my project if you haven’t read any of my post yet, I am doing an inquiry project with the question “How does misinformation negatively affect someone?”. In my second blog post, I mentioned 3 questions that I would first research about my topic. I have talked about one of those three questions already, and in this post, I will talk about my second question.
Research question 2: What audiences are likely to believe a fake news story?
The Study
Recently, there was a global study showing what groups were more likely to fall for fake news. Around 66,000 from two dozen countries participated in this study called Misinformation Susceptibility Test (MIST), by identifying whether a news headline was fake or not. In the end, it was determined that Gen-Z was the most vulnerable group to fall for fake news. [1]
This study was to understand how likely different groups of people are to fall for misinformation, and if those people think they can spot it. [1]
Gen-Z
Since Gen-Z is the main generations to grow up with devices and the internet, they struggle the most in finding bogus online. [2]
“There is this myth of the digital native, that because some people have grown up with digital devices, they are well equipped to make sense of the information that those devices provide”- Joel Breakstone. [3]
When there’s big events happening around the world, knowing the difference between real and fake news is very important. For example, with the presidential elections in the U.S. People fall for fake news about different candidates or situations related to them, which changes who that person would vote for. [2]
Sources
Rolfsen, Erik . “Who Is Most Likely to Fall for Fake News? – UBC News.” UBC News, 7 Apr. 2025, news.ubc.ca/2025/04/misinformation-susceptibility-who-falls-for-fake-news/. [1]
Kelly, Jane. “Research Finds Gen Z, Millennials More Vulnerable to Fake News.” UVA Today, 6 Sept. 2024, news.virginia.edu/content/research-finds-gen-z-millennials-more-vulnerable-fake-news. [2]
Kim, Catherine. “How Gen Z Became the Most Gullible Generation.” POLITICO, Politico, 23 Apr. 2025, www.politico.com/news/magazine/2025/04/23/gen-z-media-tiktok-misinformation-00287561. [3]
