It was found that fact-checking false statements made by Donald Trump proved effective for both Trump and anti-Trump supporters. Because the remarks made by Trump did not necessarily challenge the personal beliefs of the participants, the results coincide with the attitude-protection hypothesis.

Ohio State University, Columbus

Overall, fact-checking has been found to positively influence beliefs. Although, there are differences in effectiveness depending on the type of fact-checking message, pre-existing beliefs, and inclusion of visual elements. 

Effectiveness of Fact-Checking

Swire, B., Berinsky, A. J., Lewandowsky, S., & Ecker, U. K. H. 2017). Processing political misinformation: Comprehending the Trump phenomenon. Royal Society Open Science, 4(3), 160802. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.160802

Processing political misinformation: Comprehending the Trump phenomenon

Effectiveness of Fact-Checking on Statements made by Donald Trump

Fact-checking was found to be effective in correcting participants' beliefs regardless of partisanship. When fact-checking corrections outweighed affirmations, participants reported less voting support for the source also regardless of partisanship.

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