fake news

[ feyk nooz, nyooz ]

noun

1. false news stories, often of a sensational nature, created to be widely shared or distributed for the purpose of generating revenue, or promoting or discrediting a public figure, political movement, company, etc.:

   It’s impossible to avoid clickbait and fake news on social media.

2. a parody that presents current events or other news topics for humorous effect in an obviously satirical imitation of journalism:

   The website publishes fake news that is hilarious and surprisingly insightful.

3. Sometimes Facetious. (used as a conversational tactic to dispute or discredit information that is perceived as hostile or unflattering):

   The senator insisted that recent polls forecasting an election loss were just fake news.

Word History and Origins

Origin of fake news¹

First recorded in 1800–20 in the sense “false news, spurious news”; the current sense was first recorded in 2010–15

Example Sentences

The new regulation also calls on operators to set up mechanisms like a creator blacklist to root out fake news.

From TechCrunch

Now, as the fatal implications of fake news — whether it has to do with the pandemic or politics — become increasingly clear, a growing slate of video games is emerging to counter that threat.

From Ozy

Bigger groups enable fake news — and calls to violence — to spread more quickly.

From Vox

From October 2020 to mid-January 2021, 1,688 advertisers ran 8,776 unique ads on sites flagged in NewsGuard’s Election Misinformation Tracking Center for publishing fake news and conspiracy theories about the election.

From Digiday

This is, after all, what any regular day on the Internet looks like—with information unregulated and manipulated to communicate skewed views and fake news, more often than not encouraging political fury and violence.

From Fortune

Back then, every single newspaper, website, and news show (even the fake news shows) was awash in gridiron scandal.

From The Daily Beast

It was the first time an entertainer broadcasted a fake-news program from a war zone.

From The Daily Beast

I was mighty comfortable lying on my blanket, and you just thought you'd see how you could stir us up with some fake news.

From Project Gutenberg

But it is not of fake news alone, probably, that the Versailles Assembly is afraid.

From Project Gutenberg