Misinformation in the Latino Community
Latinos make up the largest ethnic minority group in the United States; however, often times, they are the ones who are most at risk of being misinformed. The language barrier plays a huge role in the way Latinos are able to become informed on hot topics. For most Latinos, English is not their first language. Therefore, they obtain most of their news in Spanish through social media platforms, such as Facebook. Facebook is the leading platform used by Latinos with 73% of Latinos using it followed by YouTube at 56%. Although Facebook has made efforts to take down misinformation, their efforts have drastically failed with Spanish-language content. Around 70% of misinformation is flagged with warning labels on Facebook when the content is in English; however, only 30% of misinformation is flagged when the content is in Spanish.
The lack of resources and efforts to combat misinformation within the Latino community has made is incredibly difficult for Latinos to be well-informed on political news, eventually leading them to also spread fake news. Misinformation has also been a contributing factor to the reason Latinos either choose to not vote or end up voting for candidates they thought would best represent them. Overall, these issues make the need for more Latino representation in ownership of media crucial to help fight against misinformation directed towards the Latino community.
References
Llaguno, S. (2023, March 23). The Power of Hispanic Social Media: Reaching a Growing Market. Extravision Digital. https://www.entravisionlocalmarketingsolutions.com/the-power-of-hispanic-social-media#:~:text=Facebook%3A%2073%25%20of%20Hispanics%20use,most%20popular%20platform%20by%20far.
Paul, K. (2021, March 3). “Facebook has a blind spot”: Why Spanish-language misinformation is flourishing. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2021/mar/03/facebook-spanish-language-misinformation-covid-19-election
Hello Tania,
ReplyDeleteYou have provided a great post about the increasing misinformation among Latinos in America. Your article sheds light on the pressing issue of the language barrier and its implications for accessing information that can help them make the right decision in the voting booth. Every citizen deserves to stay well-informed, particularly in the domain of politics. Unfortunately, Latinos have to utilize social media platforms, which are full of misinformation, to stay updated. Apart from the language barrier, the underrepresentation of Latinos in the media is another key reason why they are not informed. Despite being among the largest minority groups in America (19% of the population), Latinos are only represented by 3.1% of lead actors in TV shows and 2.1% of co-lead/ensemble actors. Only 1.5% of TV showrunners and 1.3% of directors were Latino in 2022. As you have pointed out, there is a need for extensive initiatives to counteract disinformation in Spanish-language material, along with a greater presence of Latino individuals in media to guarantee precise and impartial reporting for this demographic. The correlation between misinformation and political activity, or the absence thereof, is a significant revelation, underscoring the necessity of tackling this matter for the overall well-being of the democratic process in America.