How Does Social Media Affect American Democracy

Following the 2016 U.S. presidential election, the world-wide phenomenon known as fake news has risen in society. Media technology has consistently affected the American democracy in many ways. Going back to the 19th century, newspaper industries expanded dramatically due to cheaper newsprint and improved pressing machines. More recently, in the 20th century, as radio and television became dominant, large corporations were able to more easily weave their way into society. Finally, most recently, the focus of concern has shifted to social media. Social media platforms such as Facebook have a dramatically different structure than previous media technologies. Massive amounts of content are able to be shared among users without any significant

For example, some websites are created for the sole purpose of generating false or misleading information while carrying the name of website that may sound legitimate. Then there are satirical sites that contain articles that could be viewed as factual, but can use false claims or stories for comedic purposes. Lastly, there are other sites relaying a mix between factual articles along with some false articles. What is interesting is that fake news websites typically don’t last long. Many that were used during the 2016 election do not exist anymore. There can be many purposes for providing false information; however, there seem to be two main motivations for providing fake news. The first is economically related. A news site can gain significant revenue from going viral and attracting users to “click” on their article or site. This motivation is most likely the intriguing reason for providing fake news. For example, there were many websites created during the 2016 presidential election that provided false information favoring both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton that gained tens of thousands of dollars from advertising due to popularity. The second motivation has to do with the culprit’s ideology. Some providers for false information aim to boost a candidate that they