Naivety and Cognitive Inertia as Attributes for the Viralization of Fake News on Online Social Networks

Abstract

The dissemination of fake news on online social networks has created a scenario of disinformation in which manipulation and control are used to influence behavior and gain advantages. This phenomenon has motivated joint efforts to inhibit its spread. However, despite these initiatives, the problem persists. The assumption is that users of these channels, who are key agents in confronting this phenomenon, become contributors to disinformation when affected by naivety or cognitive inertia. The aim is to analyze the role of these users in the spread of fake news and identify factors that influence their uncritical stance. Conducted through a narrative review of the literature for theoretical purposes, this analysis adopts a reflective, exploratory and essayistic approach to the condition of co-participants of online social network users in the face of the problem of fake news, based on key themes such as post-truth and critical information competence, and illustrated by an empirical analysis of three specific cases of viral fake news. It is concluded that users of online social networks, when naive and inert, are part of the problem and, therefore, need to be more reactive, instead of, consciously or unconsciously, becoming agents of misinformation.