Wisconsin State Law Library

Fake news is not a new phenomenon (see Washington Post opinion article, "Fake news? That's a very old story." by Robert G. Parkinson, November 25, 2016) and can be construed as humorous (see The Onion). The most recent election raised issues that the library profession takes very seriously. Librarians hope to educate patrons on finding credible and reliable sources. The following resources relate to information literacy and explore the emergent issue of fake news coming into the courts.

According to the American Library Association, information literacy is a set of abilities requiring individuals to "recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information." When in doubt, contact the librarians at the Wisconsin State Law Library to assist in your research.

Educational resources

• Alternative Facts and Fake News - Verifiability in the Information Society (International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions, January 27, 2017).
• How To Spot Fake News graphic
• How to Spot Fake News, Eugene Kiely and Lori Robertson November 18, 2016.
• Evaluating Information: The Cornerstone of Civic Online Reasoning (Stanford History Education Group, 2016).
• Post-Truth: Fake News and a New Era of Information Literacy (American Library Association Webinar, February 22, 2017).
• Webinar
• Evaluating Information - Applying the CRAAP Test (Meriam Library, California State University)
• Show Me the Learning: Navigating Information on Literacy through Multiple Life Perspectives, Alice B. Ruleman, Laura Horne-Popp, and Robert Hallis - Principles based on recommendations from the Association of Colleges and Research Libraries.
• Includes this graphic: The CRAAP Test
• Librarians, Information Literacy, and Fake News, Kathy Stein-Smith, Strategic Library, Issue 37, March 15, 2017.
• Truth, truthiness, triangulation: A news literacy toolkit for a "post-truth" world, Joyce Valenza , November 26, 2016.
• False, Misleading, Clickbait-y, and/or Satirical "News" Sources, Melissa Zimdars, 2016.

Law reviews

• Fake News, Free Speech, & The Third-Person Effect: I'm No Fool, But Others Are, Clay Calvert, 7 Wake Forest L. Rev. Online 12 (2017).

In the news

• Here's Why Facebook and Google Can't Fix the Fake News Problem, Mathew Ingram, March 29, 2017.
• Evaluating Sources in a ‘Post-Truth' World: Ideas for Teaching and Learning About Fake News, Katherine Schulten and Amanda Christy Brown, Jan. 19, 2017.
• What's the Legal Definition of "Fake News?" One Newspaper Publisher Might Sue to Find Out, Franziska Kues, Poynter, March 29, 2017.

Case law

• D Magazine Partners, L.P. v. Rosenthal, No. 15-0790 (Tex. Sup. Ct. 2017 ).
• Federal Trade Commission v. LeadClick Media, 838 F.3d 158.
• Self-Proclaimed Publisher of Fake News Sites Loses Circuit Appeal, Shari Claire Lewis, Dec. 19, 2016.