What's Going on in the Korean Peninsula? A Study on Perception and Influence of South and North Korea-Related Fake News

Abstract

Fake news, which contains false information to deceive audiences, may potentially influence inter-Korean relations. Two studies probe into South Koreans' experience of and reaction to fake news exposure, and their ability to distinguish fake news from real news. Study 1 reveals that people have negative attitudes for fake news and perceive its impact to be greater on others than on themselves. Study 2 tests hypotheses based on the third-person effect (TPE) and the first-person effect (FPE), discovering that South Koreans display the TPE on North Korea-related fake news and advocate fake news censorship. It also examines Korean citizens' ability to identify North Korea-related fake news and finds that most people fail to do so accurately despite considering that fake news will have a relatively small impact on themselves. We conclude that different agents should cooperate to reduce the negative impact of fake news.