Reading Assignment 5

JJ Cook
Anne Pemberton
LIB 103
November 17, 2008
Reading Assignment # 5
How do you know if a website is legitimate, a hoax, or a spoof? There are a lot of websites that are counterfeit, malicous, product ficticous, parodies/spoofs/entertainment, hacks and disinformation. Mistakes are another source of disinformation.
Counterfeit sites are the most serious hoax website. A counterfeit site pretends to be a legitimate site to publicize false information.
All media are susceptible to false facts, this is something internet users need to keep in mind when they both look at news reports. There was an incident in the Associated Press Report about 400 deer in Ohio that shows how gullible news professionals can be when they don't use critical evaluation skills.
Disinformation means “the dissemination of deliberately false information especially when supplied by a government or its agent to a foreign power or the media with the intention of influencing the policies or opinions of those who receive it.”
There are a lot of sites that parody or spoof persons, companies, and organizations. There is very little difference b/w a spoof and a parody. The onion site and the Mankato Minnesota page are popular among parody sites.
The entertainment industry gets a lot of internet misinformation, mainly involving counterfeit stories, scripts, plot exposes, and show endings. This is troubling to the producers who will usually produce alternate endings for shows they feel will produce hoaxes.
On the flip side of the hoax and counterfeit websites “one persons misinformation can be another person's gold mine.” Such sites can offer a different perspective on topics that have a controlling truth.
The amount of misinformation is going to to continue to be on the internet unless the internet is strictly regulated, which is not going to happen any time soon. This would be nearly impossible and is something no one wants. The only way to avoid the misinformation is to question and research its validity every time.