Fake News and False Corroboration: Interactivity in Rumor Networks

Rumors inundate every social network. Some of them are true, but many of them are false. On rare occasions, a false rumor is exposed as the lie that it is. But more commonly, false rumors have a habit of obtaining apparent verification, by corroboration from what seems to be a second independent source. However, in complex social networks, the connectivity is such that a putative second source is almost never actually independent of the original source. In the present work, rumor network simulations demonstrate how remarkably easy it is for a node in the network to be fooled into thinking it has received independent verification of a false rumor, when in fact that “second source” can be traced back to the original source. By developing a theoretical understanding of the circumstances under which the spread of false rumors, “alternative facts,” and fake news can be controlled, perhaps the field can help prevent them from ruining elections and ruining entire nations.