A cross-national examination of the effects of accuracy nudges and content veracity labels on belief in and sharing of misleading news

This study examined whether accuracy nudges and content veracity labels enhance people’s discernment in believing and sharing true versus false news. Participants in the U.K., the U.S., and Hong Kong were shown five true and five false social media posts in random order. Two true posts and two false posts were randomly assigned “True” and “False” labels, respectively. Multilevel regression models indicated that accuracy nudges and veracity labels had no direct effects on the perceived accuracy of posts or willingness to share them, though the interaction of the “False” label and accuracy nudge significantly reduced the perceived accuracy of and intention to share false news across the samples. Post-hoc analyses further uncovered contingent effects based on individual differences, including partisan identity in the U.S. and conspiratorial thinking in the U.K. and Hong Kong. The findings demonstrate the efficacy of combined countermeasures in attenuating the effects of misinformation.