How to stop disinformation

The guide outlines five primary methods to combat disinformation: avoiding engagement with false content to prevent algorithmic amplification, 'inoculating' others by warning them of disinformation patterns, amplifying credible sources using techniques like the 'truth sandwich', reporting violating content to social media platforms, and building trust through one-on-one conversations.

• Engaging with disinformation on social media—including commenting, reacting, or debunking—can inadvertently increase its reach because algorithms interpret such engagement as popularity, leading the content to appear more frequently in other users' feeds.
• The 'illusory truth effect' occurs when people begin to accept a lie as truth simply because they have seen the false claim repeated multiple times, increasing their familiarity with it.
• To effectively warn others about disinformation without spreading the lie itself, individuals should alert people to expect disinformation from specific sources or on specific topics, which primes them to think more critically.
• The 'truth sandwich' is a communication strategy proposed by George Lakoff that involves starting and ending a statement with facts while placing a reference to the lie in the middle, clearly identifying it as false.
• One-on-one conversations focused on building relationships and addressing the emotions behind a person's belief in disinformation, without judgment or shaming, are highly effective for inoculation and mobilization.

APA

Union of Concerned Scientists (2022). How to stop disinformation. https://www.ucs.org/resources/how-stop-disinformation

Chicago

Union of Concerned Scientists. How to stop disinformation. 2022. https://www.ucs.org/resources/how-stop-disinformation.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Union of Concerned Scientists |title=How to stop disinformation |date=1 April 2022 |url=https://www.ucs.org/resources/how-stop-disinformation |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{unionofconcernedscientists2022how, author = {{Union of Concerned Scientists}}, title = {{How to stop disinformation}}, institution = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, year = {2022}, month = apr, url = {https://www.ucs.org/resources/how-stop-disinformation}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }