ATHOL — The Athol Public Library plans to host actor John Wayne’s ghost for a pottery tutorial in outer space next week, after President Donald Trump marries Vladimir Putin.
Actually, that’s not true. The library will, in fact, host Fitchburg State University Assistant Professor Kyle Moody for a program on fake news and its increasing impact on American culture, so you can better filter out bogus information like that.
Titled “Fake It ‘Til You Make It: How Fake News Spreads and How You Can Be a Smarter News Consumer,” the free program is Thursday, March 2, at 6:30 p.m. Assistant Library Director Robin Shtulman said staff members were approached about a month ago by a patron who asked them to find a presentation that could help people become critical readers. Shtulman got Moody’s contact information from Winchendon’s Beals Library, which recently hosted the communications media professor.
“It’s definitely a big part of the library’s mission — of libraries everywhere — to really connect people with the information they need. And we’re all about connecting people with real information so that they can make truly informed decisions that serve their best interests,” Shtulman said. “I think so many things get publicity, and people have a tendency to have the first thing they hear stick in their minds.”
Moody said he plans to explain what fake news looks and sounds like.
“This will lead into covering the role of social media in the dissemination of this content, along with the need for consumers of social media and news to become more media literate,” he said, adding that he will also “highlight how political partisanship plays a role in creating ‘filter bubbles’ for consumers of news on social media, which creates a dangerously warped perspective of the world on both sides.”
Moody said these filter bubbles also drive a desire for greater news coverage, fanning the flames of the fake news problem because consumers often want more information than is available from traditional sources.
Shtulman expects the presentation to last roughly one hour.
Anyone interested in attending is encouraged to sign up by calling the library at 978-249-9515 because seating is limited. Refreshments will be offered by the Friends of the Athol Public Library.