Fake News and Misinformation

Misinformation is not new — but its scale, speed, and sophistication have changed dramatically. False narratives now shape elections, fuel health crises, and deepen social divisions across the world. Misinformation spreads across health, climate, politics, and conflict, and in each domain, the consequences of believing the wrong thing can be severe. The World Economic Forum ranked misinformation and disinformation as the 2nd most severe short-term global risk for 2025-2026.

Misinformation spreads because it works. Algorithms on major platforms are designed to maximize engagement, and content that triggers outrage and certainty consistently outperforms nuanced, accurate information. People are drawn to information that confirms what they already believe, making correction difficult even when the truth is available. At the same time, AI and deepfake technologies have made it dramatically easier to create convincing false content at scale — synthetic voices, fabricated videos, and automated bot networks that amplify false narratives. In addition, AI chat platforms like ChatGPT and Claude, now primary tools for learning for millions, frequently generate confident-sounding errors. For example, in documented cases, lawyers have submitted court briefs citing non-existent rulings after relying on AI tools. Meanwhile, the platforms with the most power to slow misinformation (like Meta, TikTok, and X) are private companies with their own commercial interests, and no mechanism exists to compel them to act. Governments can regulate, but risk crossing into censorship. The result is a system where no single actor has both the power and the incentive to fix it.

Each dimension of this challenge requires different approaches and involves different actors. Pick the one your team wants to dig into, then take it to your worksheet.