The Study
Comparing the Willingness to Share for Human-generated vs. AI-generated Fake News
This study asked people what they thought about different fake news stories and whether they’d share them. It found patterns—like people sharing both kinds equally—but it didn’t change anything or control who saw what. So it can’t prove one thing causes another, only that things are linked.
Analysis score
Maximum 44 for a cross-sectional study.
Where the score came from
People think AI-made fake news is less true than human-made fake news, but they still share both just as much.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 544 / 100
Quality score
Snapshots of a population at a single point in time, or descriptions of small groups. Can identify correlations and prevalence, but cannot determine cause and effect.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Yes — this means people share fake news not because they believe it, but because of emotions, habits, or social pressure.
- 2AI fake news was rated less accurate, but 988 adults shared AI and human fake news equally.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction
Year
2024
Authors
Amirsiavosh Bashardoust, S. Feuerriegel, Y. Shrestha
Related Content
Claims (6)
In a survey of 988 adults, people rated AI-generated fake news as less accurate than human-generated fake news, but they shared both types at the same rate, showing that perceived accuracy does not control whether people share fake news on social media.
People share AI-generated fake news just as often as human-generated fake news, even when they rate the AI-generated content as less accurate.
Adults with lower education levels and those who use social media more frequently are more likely to believe AI-generated fake news is accurate and to share it.
Adults rate fake news created by artificial intelligence as less accurate than fake news written by humans when shown COVID-19-related false stories.
In a group of 988 adults, people are equally likely to share fake news created by AI and fake news created by humans, even when they perceive one as more accurate than the other, suggesting that emotions or social pressures influence sharing more than whether something is true.
AI systems can create fake scientific studies that appear real and are presented as valid research.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.