In workshop 1, you got to know the news - now it's time to make the news.
Please complete the online activities below before the workshop. The tasks can be done on your own or together with a teacher in the classroom. They are a great reminder of the techniques used in fake and biased news that you'll put into practice in workshop two.
(15-20 minutes)
If you don't have much time, try to complete tasks 1-3 and finish the rest at home.
1. Refresher
(2 minutes)
All good and trustworthy news stories will avoid bias, misinformation and disinformation. These can change the way we see things and contribute to fake news.
Can you remember what bias, balance, misinformation and disinformation mean?
Bias
Bias is when a story is聽only presented from one viewpoint without considering the other side of the story.
Balance
Balance is being fair to different opinions and sides of a story.
Misinformation
Fake news that is created and spread by MIStake 鈥 by someone who doesn鈥檛 realise that it鈥檚 false.
Disinformation
False information deliberately spread in order to influence public opinion or hide the other side of the story.
2. How to be balanced
(3 minutes)
A balanced news report doesn't try to make you believe one specific thing or nudge you in a particular direction. Instead, it shows all angles of the story and allows you to make an informed decision.
Watch the 成人快手 News TikTok below and see if you can spot how journalist Lucy Woodham keeps the news story balanced.
Credit: @bbcnews on TikTok
Okay, bad news. Artificial intelligence could lead to the extinction of humanity - that's what a group of experts, including the heads of Google DeepMind and OpenAI, which makes ChatGPT, have warned.
They signed a statement published online that said: "Mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority alongside other societal-scale risks such as pandemics and nuclear war." Which is quite apocalypse vibes!
But not everyone agrees with the statement. A lot of other AI experts say the fears are overblown. They think AI wiping out humanity is unrealistic and distracts from other issues with the technology.
And this isn't the first time that key figures in artificial intelligence have come together to raise concerns about the future of AI. In March this year, experts, including Elon Musk, said the race to develop AI was out of control, and called for training of AI systems to be suspended.
In this TikTok, they're really clear about where the information came from. They quote experts who know a lot about AI.
The reporter talks about both sides of the story. Half way through they say "not everyone agrees with this statement" to indicate there are two sides.
3. Positive and Negative Bias
(5 minutes)
Some news reports might feature bias. The next two TikToks are on the same topic, AI, but both are only presenting one side of the story. How can we tell these are biased?
Credit: @build_in_public on TikTok
People these days seem to only talk about the scariest use cases of AI, but I think it's worth talking about the positives as well. So here's three use cases where AI is giving us a brighter future.
One, healthcare. AI is used to predict diseases, aid and diagnoses, and personalise treatment plans.
Two, education. AI-powered systems can adapt to individual learning styles, provide personalised learning materials, and automate administrative tasks, giving teachers more time to teach.
And three, social good. AI is predicting areas that require disaster relief, helping to find missing people and aiding in the fight against human trafficking.
And AI's positive potential is vast and still largely unexplored.
Credit: @newswithchrisofficial on TikTok
Head teachers in the UK have written a letter to The Times this week saying how bewildered they are of how fast AI technology isgrowing.
School leaders do not trust tech companies to protect students and schools, so they're launching their own group to help give the right advice to schools on the dangers of AI. School leaders are not just concerned about chat bots helping students cheat, but the risk to children's mental health and their own jobs.
Head teachers are asking for real guidance and advice on AI, but here's the catch - they don't know who to trust for advice. They don't think that big tech companies can regulate AI to protect students and schools and they don't think the government can do it either.
How are these reports biased?
Balance
The TikToks don't offer any balance or suggest there are different opinions.
Evidence
The TikToks include statements without offering supporting evidence. Whether it's a positive or negative bias, reports like these often miss out important details, which makes them unreliable.
Perspective
The TikToks only presents a single perspective.
The next time you come across an online news report, think about whether it's showing things in a positive or negative way. Remember our handy acronym BEP - Balance, Evidence and Perspective. Questioning whether it鈥檚 biased or balanced, checking where the information came from and deciding whether other opinions have been shared will allow you to decide for yourself.
4. Reporter team quiz: What role would you have on a news team?
(3 minutes)
In workshop two, you are going to be working in teams to write and record your news reports.
But what role do you think you could take on in a news team? Take this quiz and see what role you might enjoy.
5. Quiz: Can you spot the fake news stories?
(5 minutes)
To finish, sharpen your fake news spotting skills with the latest fake news stories quiz below.
Congratulations, you've completed all the pre-workshop tasks!
Well done for improving your fake news knowledge. If you have time, watch the videos below to help get you ready for the next workshop.
