While many use social media to connect with friends and family, an increasing number of bad actors exploit these platforms to spread lies, tricking, confusing, and misinforming unsuspecting users. To complicate matters, social media companies such as X and Meta have recently scaled back or outright eliminated content moderation, which will only exacerbate the disinformation on their platforms— rather than reduce it. Consequently, users must take responsibility for calling out and debunking these myths.

In response to the increasing threat of disinformation, the Gas Leaks Project launched an educational campaign highlighting climate disinformation aimed at the Latino community. This campaign includes PSA-style and comedic videos, graphics, and a landing page designed to educate Latino audiences about disinformation and how to identify and stop it. 

Fifty-four percent of Americans report getting their news from social media, where they can fall victim to false information and inadvertently spread misinformation. However, Latinos’ preference for using social media as a news source exposes them to more fake news. Eighty-five percent of Latinos stated they often or sometimes get their news from digital devices, while fifty-six percent reported acquiring it from social media. Latinos are also more likely to prefer receiving their news from social media than other American demographic groups.

Latinos are the largest consumers of Spanish social media content, which is less scrutinized than English content. Recent research indicates that Latinos who use Spanish social media are more likely to believe false narratives compared to those who use English social media for news. Examples include:

Visit Hot & Toxic’s Disinformation 101 to learn more about mis-/disinformation and how to recognize and stop it!