The menace of fake news

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When there is a continuous dilemma of whom or what to believe, we generally start losing trust. The case of social media has been one such. The amount of fake news that's surfacing is just too overwhelming to ignore that there is a moral crisis.


Social media are the tools of information at the disposal of a citizen. They give crucial information in this fast paced ever changing world. Since they serve the citizen and the general public by creating awareness, they are one of the pillars of our democracy. Being said that, they are expected to have high moral principles and ethics in their working. Transparency and accountability cannot be divorced from its basic tenets.

Today, we are facing one of the worst crisis where the social media is compromised because of vested interests and unwarranted bias and  influence. The integrity is compromised and the morals just thrown away into the bin as if it never existed in the first place. The chain of fake news are increasing day by day and with each passing moment, people are losing confidence in social media. There is a dilemma of what to believe and what not to believe. How do we gauge what is the truth? There is no way for us to realise it until the news becomes exposed as fake news. It has even led to some serious problems like mob violence, unwanted false rumours in Citizenship amendment bill and the like. No doubt the truth will surface at a certain point of time, but the damage would have been already done and are we really democratic if people can't get authentic information? The fake news are curbing the liberty of the individual to access the truth. It is violative of Article 21 of the constitution that is right to life and personal liberty. Right to life is not just a mere animal existence and it involves many aspects of dignity like clean air and environment, right to be treated as a human, etc. Right to truth is the dignity of each individual and no one should be deprived of it. Right to speech and expression under article 19 is not an absolute right and has to be enjoyed keeping in mind the public order, morality, unity and integrity of the country. It does not grant an absolute free license to spread false and fake news.

There is a need to train and educate people on the menace of the fake news. They should be made aware of the crucial role that social media play in the society and the responsibilities thereof. Depriving the truth is equivalent to manipulation of information and is a criminal offence. As we move towards a digital economy, the penetration of internet increases and the damage done by fake news will just aggravate. Shutting down the internet to control the spread of rumours is a temporary short term solution. In the long run, education of the people in values related to truth like accuracy, fairness, honesty and integrity is the way forward.

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