Injecting disinformation into public space: pseudo-media and reality-altering narratives

Autores/as

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3145/epi.2022.may.12

Palabras clave:

Pseudo-media, Hyper-partisan Media, Cyber-media, Digital media, Polarization, Populism, Pandemics, Politics, Social minorities, Extreme right, Clickbait, Spain, Frames, Disinformation, Journalistic quality

Resumen

This paper analyses the context of disinformation in Spain from the perspective of the pseudo-media (i.e., websites that mimic conventional media to offer partisan content based on alternative facts). Using a quantitative (N = 1,143) and qualitative (n = 396) methodology, this research analyses publications from eight Spanish pseudo-media that reach more than 4 million unique users. Results reveal an interest in three topics: vaccination, restrictions and speculation about Covid-19, national politics -focused on criticism against government- and topics related to human rights -mainly LGBTI, gender, immigration- with a total of 58.1% of the content published in four sections (International, Spain, Society, and Economy). The study reveals a growing trend towards polarisation and the use of clickbait techniques in four out of ten headlines. The Internet and social media are the most common sources quoted, while a third of the items lack sources or correspond to opinion pieces. Minorities and vulnerable groups are framed as a social threat, and the presentation of the coalition government as a danger to Spain that must be put to an end, which makes the discourse of these websites in tune with the ideology of the far right wing.

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Publicado

2022-06-06

Cómo citar

Palau Sampio, D., & Carratalá, A. . (2022). Injecting disinformation into public space: pseudo-media and reality-altering narratives. Profesional De La información Information Professional, 31(3). https://doi.org/10.3145/epi.2022.may.12

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Artí­culos de investigación / Research articles