THE ROLES OF LIBRARIANS IN FIGHTING AGAINST FAKE NEWS, DISINFORMATION, AND MISINFORMATION

This research aimed to identify the roles of librarians in fighting against fake news, disinformation, and misinformation. It is anchored on the Information Manipulation Theory (IMT) which discusses how environmental forces affect interpersonal communication which can result in the creation and use of misleading verbal statements. It provides the framework for identifying false news based on the way statements are put together. This can aid librarians in bringing awareness in identifying real news and fake news. This study used a quantitative research design with the utilization of a survey questionnaire to gather information needed for the study. The weighted mean method was utilized in the data analysis plan to determine the frequency and percentage distribution of the assessment survey. The respondents of this study were thirty (30) registered librarians who were chosen purposively, in Lucena City. Most of the librarians who answered the survey were female, 36 years old and above, and from a university. Results show that Facebook is where fake news is most encountered, and books are the least source of fake news. Evaluating sources in terms of reliability, accuracy, and relevancy all strongly agree. Providing students with information resources, informing students on how to identify fake news, providing them quality and reliable open-access websites, conducting information literacy programs in regards to fake news, and providing awareness in the different platforms that fake news is commonly seen, are the librarian's role to combat fake news, disinformation, and misinformation. The output of this study is a brochure that will serve as a guide in identifying fake news and the roles of librarians in preventing them.