It wasn’t so many years ago that H.G. Wells read his War of the Worlds story on a live radio broadcast. People tuning in thought his fictional book about aliens invading was real life! Before he finished reading, many Americans were reporting for duty at their local police stations and hospitals to help defend humanity against the martians.
Looking back on this event, we might imagine how this could have ever happened? People jumping the gun and actually believing martians were invading seems ludicrous.
But it did happen and it can still happen. That’s why you should be sure to verify your news before making outlandish claims. We don’t want someone 80 years from now seeing your Facebook post in a historical archive and laughing.
You can read more historical examples of when fake news had major consequences here.
You can also learn more about identifying fake news here.