(MENAFN- Gulf Times) The tremors of the growing era of ‘fake news' felt across the globe were the focus of a special conversation at Northwestern University in Qatar (NU-Q) with internationally syndicated columnist and host of CNN's ‘GPS' programme, Fareed Zakaria.
Coinciding with his visit to Qatar as a keynote speaker for the annual WISE conference, Zakaria took part in a public interview before more than 100 students, faculty and staff on Tuesday.
He discussed implications of a ‘post-fact' world, fake news and the role of social media in shaping opinions and influencing news consumption, among other topics, at a session conducted by NU-Q dean and CEO Everette E Dennis.
In a discussion that ranged from media coverage of foreign policy and domestic politics to the role writing and liberal arts education, Zakaria warned that globalisation and digitisation mandates new approaches, even radical ones for higher education.
Dennis asked Zakaria about the process of deciding what news to cover and how he is able to create content that appeals to a global audience. 'We should choose a story, Zakaria explained, 'where we have something interesting or important to say, there needs to be an added value to everything you say, everyone you interview, and each topic you choose.
On the ‘post-fact' world, he said: 'There's a great danger that we are entering a world enabled by all these technologies that we love… technologies that make no real distinction between truth and falsehood. In fact, it is easier for falsehood to go viral than a truth, because what virality is really dependent on is the sensational nature of the news. And, by definition, a lie is more sensational than the truth.
Also discussed was distinguishing between real and fake news and how the media are dealing with new challenges of attacks on their coverage and accusations of ‘fake news'.
On social media and its increased use as a main source for news consumption, Zakaria underscored the importance of acquiring in-depth knowledge and not relying on fragmented bits of information to draw conclusions or believe as truth.
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