Fake as a Method of Manipulation in the Media: Ukrainian Experience

The article describes the characteristics of “fake”, “fake news”. The manipulative technologies in the media are considered. According to the author, today the users of social networks constantly see false information, written and disseminated in order to increase internet traffic. Extremely dangerous is the “news” created to discriminate on the basis of gender, race, nationality, language, origin, religion, affiliation with any social group, political beliefs, and also information distributed in order to fraudulently seize cash (for example, a message about raising funds for the treatment of seriously ill children).

Attention is drawn to the fact that fakes are used as a powerful means of manipulating public consciousness. This is because today the direct ideological pressure on the recipient is applied much less than before, and other means, mainly manipulative, are used for “unobtrusive” imposition.

It is annoying that consumers of information can not always distinguish fake from reality, propaganda message from true. Among the news headlines, there is also media content placed on the pages of fake publications, which by their titles impress, shock the user. They attract increased attention and interest from people who continue to spread the false news by wanting to reach a larger audience, share it with their social networking friends, thus becoming a propaganda tool.

On the eve of the 2019 elections some Ukrainian media published the results of questionable polls or incorrectly submitted data from reputable sociological organizations, which became an instrument of campaigning for specific presidential candidates.

Emphasized on that fact, that related to presidential candidates media disseminated polls to specific politicians.

According to the author, referring to the results of various studies, on the TV channel “1 + 1” more often talked about high ratings of Volodymyr Zelenskyi, in the news “Inter” — about the leadership of Yuriy Boyko, and on the TRK “Ukraina” — about the possible victory of Olexander Vilkul.