"Народные теории" фейковых новостей

Полис. Политические исследования. 2025. № 6. С. 73–85.

Kazun A. D.

This study examines folk theories of fake news within the context of a complex, heterogeneous, and rapidly changing media environment. This article is based on 119 semi-structured interviews exploring perceptions of fake news. Analysis reveals three prevalent folk theories concerning this phenomenon: (1) "Fake news is everywhere," reflecting a relativistic understanding of facts. Informants expressed a pervasive sense of disinformation's prevalence, viewing objective knowledge as unattainable and the boundaries between truth and falsehood as blurred. Truth and falsehood are not perceived as binary opposites but rather as a continuum. Ontological and epistemological relativism are observed. (2) "Fake news is what I disagree with" aligns with confirmation bias and selective exposure. This theory reveals the ideological framing of fake news, where truth is perceived not as objective but as a moral category. A clear "us" vs. "them" dichotomy emerges, distinguishing those possessing "correct truth" from those consuming and falling victim to disinformation. The same news sources may be interpreted as credible or fake depending on the respondent's viewpoint. (3) "Fake news threatens others (more)," reflecting a third-person effect. Informants believed disinformation disproportionately affects groups differing from themselves, often categorized by age (young vs. old), news source usage (television vs. internet), and political affiliation.

Keywords: релятивизм, медиапотребление, disinformation, постправда, дезинформация, fake news, фейковые новости, селективное восприятие, news consumption, folk theories, third-person effect, народные теории, эффект третьего лица

Publication based on the results of: Dynamics of Consumer, Financial and Labor Behavior in Russians under the New Geopolitical Conditions (2025)