Face the Facts: Young Fact-Checking Experts Show You How to Tell Fact from Fiction Online | Student Reporting Labs

On October 6th, PBS NewsHour Student Reporting Labs, in partnership with the Poynter Institute’s MediaWise, hosted “Face the Facts: Election 2020 Youth Town Hall.” The virtual event was produced to engage students and first-time voters on how to be prepared and better informed ahead of the November elections. The livestream included different segments featuring young people that have been clipped for educators to use separately or all together to initiate conversations about civics, elections and the role of young voters in a democratic society. 

In this video, Hari Sreenivasan, anchor of PBS NewsHour Weekend, talked with MediaWise Campus Correspondents about tips for spotting misinformation online, such as rumors, hoaxes and misleading articles. Viewers were guided through best practices for assessing the validity of different types of information.

Use the video, discussion questions, and activities provided to learn how teen fact-checkers sift through a sea of misinformation to find trusted sources.

Hosted by Amna Nawaz, senior national correspondent and primary substitute anchor for the PBS NewsHour. The event included special guests; Hari Sreenivasan, NewsHour senior correspondent and anchor for NewsHour Weekend, Savannah Sellers, NBC News and MSNBC correspondent and co-host of Stay Tuned, NBC’s twice-daily news show on Snapchat and Instagram, and Peter Hamby, host of Snapchat’s Good Luck, America.

For additional resources. Help students critically analyze media using the advice/steps provided in these videos.