Session
OECD
• Ms. Molly Lesher, OECD, France • Ms. Hanna Pawelec, OECD, Poland
• Ms. Molly Lesher, OECD, France • Ms. Hanna Pawelec, OECD, Poland
Organization's Website
Speakers
• Mr. Fabio Senne, Cetic.br, Brazil
• Mr. Yoichi Iida, Vice Minister of MIC, Japan
• Ms. Molly Lesher, OECD, France
Onsite Moderator
Ms. Molly Lesher
Rapporteur
Ms. Hanna Pawelec
SDGs
3. Good Health and Well-Being
4. Quality Education
5. Gender Equality
13. Climate Action
16. Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
Targets: False and misleading content online can significantly undermine public health efforts, leading to risky health behaviors and eroding trust in science and educational institutions. Media literacy is crucial in limiting the spread and impact of such content. Additionally, mis- and disinformation can perpetuate gender stereotypes and undermine women's rights, hindering progress towards gender equality. It also poses a threat to climate action by spreading false narratives about climate change. Combatting misinformation is essential to reduce political polarization and build public trust in democratic institutions.
4. Quality Education
5. Gender Equality
13. Climate Action
16. Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
Targets: False and misleading content online can significantly undermine public health efforts, leading to risky health behaviors and eroding trust in science and educational institutions. Media literacy is crucial in limiting the spread and impact of such content. Additionally, mis- and disinformation can perpetuate gender stereotypes and undermine women's rights, hindering progress towards gender equality. It also poses a threat to climate action by spreading false narratives about climate change. Combatting misinformation is essential to reduce political polarization and build public trust in democratic institutions.
Format
Presentation
Duration (minutes)
30
Description
Lies, conspiracy theories, propaganda and other false and misleading content are not new. However, the rise of the Internet and online platforms have changed the scale and speed by which such content can be spread, creating risks to the safety and well-being of people and society. Despite its prevalence and pernicious effects, there is a lack of cross-country comparable evidence about the scale, scope and impact of false and misleading content online.
This lightning talk will explore the key findings from the OECD Truth Quest Survey which measures the ability of people to identify false and misleading content online across 21 countries. Moreover, it assesses whether some types of content are more easily distinguishable as false and misleading than others and whether the theme (health, environment, international affairs) plays any role in its detection. It provides evidence about whether AI-generated content is easier to identify than human-generated content as well as insights into the effects of AI labelling. It further presents information on people’s behaviour as they interact with false and misleading content.
The main findings of the OECD Truth Quest Survey include:
• Perceived ability to identify false and misleading content online is uncorrelated with measured ability.
• The type of false and misleading content (i.e., misinformation, disinformation, contextual deception, propaganda, and satire) drives some differences within and across countries, but theme does not play a significant role.
• AI-generated content is easier to identify than human-generated content.
• Perceptions about AI affect people’s ability to identify the veracity of content online.
• Social media is a popular news source, and those with relatively lower Truth Quest scores trust social media the most.
• Exposure to additional context does not always help people identify the veracity of information on line.
The background documents:
- OECD (2024), “The OECD Truth Quest Survey: Methodology and findings”, OECD Digital Economy Papers, No. 369, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/92a94c0f-en.
- OECD (2024), “Media consumption and privacy,” OECD Digital Economy Outlook 2024 Volume 2, https://doi.org/10.1787/3adf705b-en.
- Podcast: https://www.oecd.org/en/blogs/2025/02/can-you-handle-the-truth-Putting-…
- Data visualisations: https://goingdigital.oecd.org/indicator/80
The audience will get a glimpse of survey headlines in a real-life setting to test their ability to identify false and misleading content online. The participants will also be invited to explore interactive survey results online. In-person and online comments and questions will be taken.
The audience will get a glimpse of survey headlines in a real-life setting to test their ability to identify false and misleading content online. The participants will also be invited to explore interactive survey results online. In-person and online comments and questions will be taken.