Pew Research: “Around Three-in-Ten Americans Are Very Confident They Could Fact-Check News About COVID-19”

From Pew Research:

Most U.S. adults report having seen made-up news about COVID-19, and many have seen various claims about purported treatments. But relatively few Americans have a lot of confidence in their own ability to check the accuracy of the news and information they come across related to the coronavirus.

About three-in-ten U.S. adults (28%) say they are very confident that they would know what steps to take to check the accuracy of news and information about the coronavirus outbreak. A slightly smaller portion (22%) say they are not too or not at all confident, while the largest share – around half (49%) – express some confidence. These findings come from a Pew Research Center survey conducted April 20 to 26 among 10,139 adults who are part of the Center’s American Trends Panel.

Americans’ confidence in checking COVID-19 information aligns closely with their confidence in checking the accuracy of news stories more broadly. In early 2019, 29% of Americans said they were very confident that they would know what steps to take to check the accuracy of news stories (regardless of the specific subject matter), and 24% said they were not too or not at all confident. Again, the largest share (46%) said they were somewhat confident.

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