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Author
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Bertin Martens
Luis Aguiar
Estrella Gomez-Herrera
Frank Mueller-Langer
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Year
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2018
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Publisher
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SSRN
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Abstract
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This report contains an overview of the relevant economic research literature on the digital
transformation of news markets and the impact on the quality of news. It compares various
definitions of fake news, including false news and other types of disinformation and finds that there
is no consensus on this. It presents some survey data on consumer trust and quality perceptions of
various sources of online news that indicate relatively high trust in legacy printed and broadcasted
news publishers and lower trust in algorithm-driven news distribution channels such as
aggregators and social media. Still, two thirds of consumers access news via these channels. More
analytical empirical evidence on the online consumption of genuine and fake news shows that
strong newspaper brands continue to attract large audiences from across the political spectrum for
direct access to newspaper websites. Real news consumption on these sites dwarfs fake news
consumption. Fake news travels faster and further on social media sites. Algorithm-driven news
distribution platforms have reduced market entry costs and widened the market reach for news
publishers and readers. At the same time, they separate the role of content editors and curators of
news distribution. The latter becomes algorithm-driven, often with a view to maximize traffic and
advertising revenue. That weakens the role of trusted editors as quality intermediaries and
facilitates the distribution of false and fake news content. It might lead to news market failures.
News distribution platforms have recently become aware of the need to correct for these potential
failures. Non-regulatory initiatives such as fact-checking, enhanced media literacy and news media
codes of conduct can also contribute.
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Language
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ENGLISH