A new game to protect you from "false news"

Researchers from the University of Cambridge invented a new game called "false news" aimed at "immunizing" players of misleading news

In the game, the player plays the role of a fake news producer, scoring points by gaining adherents of his conspiracy theories and angry angrily

A team of researchers from the University of Cambridge in a previous study has already shown that briefly exposing people to propaganda tactics used by counterfeit news producers can play a role in "psychologically immunizing" them against the impact of counterfeit news

While the previous study focused on climate change disinformation, the new online game is an experiment to provide "public immunity" against a growing wave of misinformation sweeping social media and news outlets on the Internet

"Biological immunization runs small doses of the disease to build immunity," says Sander van der Linden, director of the social decision-making laboratory at Cambridge University. "Similarly, the immunization theory suggests that exposure to a weak or vague version of arguments facilitates refutation when confronted with more convincing claims "He said

"If you know how to walk in the shoes of someone who is trying to trick you, it is supposed to increase your ability to monitor and resist the techniques of deception," he said, adding that the aim of the game is to help build "mental antibodies" that can provide some immunity against the rapid spread of misleading news 

The game can be accessed at getbadnews.com, where players are encouraged to build fake news sites and deal with general responses to thorny issues such as climate change and genetic engineering

The game involves various levels involving strange conspiracy theories such as the claim that dinosaurs built pyramids, and to mislead using a real history

The study is the result of collaboration between researchers from Cambridge and the Dutch Drog Foundation, whose findings were accepted for publication in the journal Journal of Risk Research