Matter of fact : a public communications campaign promoting active involvement amongst tertiary students in the fight against fake news

• Main Authors: Ngoh, Esther Wen Xian, Fong, Yun Ying, Heng, Audrey Yen Ling, Wee, Jia Zhen
• Other Authors: Kang Hyunjin
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: Nanyang Technological University 2020
• Subjects: Social sciences::Communication
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/137545
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Matter of Fact is a pioneering media literacy campaign aimed at encouraging tertiary students ages 18-26 to call out fake news, by leaving a quick comment raising their doubts, or by reporting it. The campaign seeks to leverage the untapped potential of tertiary students, who possess functional media literacy but remain passive in the face of fake news. The eventual goal is to kickstart a climate of critical media consumption starting with the nation’s digital natives - the youths. Fake news took centre stage globally in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, with governments all over the world fighting the rampant spread of misinformation alongside the virus. Yet, even before COVID-19, Singapore was no stranger to fake news. In 2015, socio-political website The Real Singapore (TRS) sparked anti-foreigner tensions by wrongfully claiming that a Filipino family had complained about the noise from a Thaipusam procession. Guided by the Extended Parallel Processing Model, the campaign features four main content themes - (i) Target Complacency, (ii) Bring Threat (of fake news) Closer to Home, (iii) Overcome Paiseh Barrier, (iv) Establish Rationale of Calling Out (fake news). Quantitative and qualitative posttest analysis yielded encouraging positive results that demonstrated the campaign’s effectiveness and impact. This report delves into the entire campaign journey, from its formative stage to campaign conceptualisation, execution, and evaluation of its effectiveness. The report ends with recommendations based on insights gleaned for future campaigns.