BBC School Report. What is News?

In 1973 Blumer and Katz developed 'The uses of Gratification Theory' arguing audiences consume media text for one or more of the four reasons.

• Information
• Entertainment
• Socialisation
• Surveillance 

News = Facts/information

But because the 'news' you see on TV, online and in the news paper is also a product that has to sell a target audience it can also be entertaining and this may distract from the facts.

Fake News: Sources that intentionally fabricate information, disseminate deceptive content, or grossly distort actual news reports.

A few examples of this are:

Black lives matter thug protests president Trump with selfie then accidentally shoots himself in the face.

Trump to nominate Chris Christie to supreme food court.

Flat earth society prove the world is flat.

How to spot fake news:

• Does it sound real?
•