By sharing an article, the player chooses to reinforce its dissemination. The player gets maximum points if they share an article from credible sources, but they gain no points when the article is from sources with low credibility.

The "Share" Function in "Fakey"

By liking an article, the player agrees with the validity of its information. The player gets points when liking an article from credible sources, but they get very few points when it is from sources with low credibility.

The "Like" Function in "Fakey"

Fact checking is equivalent to flagging a post when using social media platforms. It suggests that the player does not believe the article is accurate. When a player fact checks an article from sources with low credibility they get maximum points, but they only get few points when it is from credible sources.

The "Fact Check" Function in "Fakey"

When clicking the hint button, the player can see the URL of the article, the name of its source, and whether the source is considered to be high or low in credibility. The player gets half the number of points when they use the hint function.

The "Hint" Function in "Fakey"

The skip function allows the player not to engage with the article. It does not affect their score.

The "Skip" Function in "Fakey"

- Share
- Like
- Fact Check
- Hint
- Skip

Davidson College

An intervention game that was created to improve online news literacy and to combat misinformation. It presents 10 current articles to each player (five from credible sources, five from sources with low credibility), and it can mimic Facebook and Twitter. Its game mechanics replicate social media platforms.

The "Fakey" Game

Micallef, N., Avram, M., Menczer, F., & Patil, S. (2021). Fakey: A Game Intervention to Improve News Literacy on Social Media. Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction, 5(CSCW1), 1-27. https://doi.org/10.1145/3449080

Fakey: A game intervention to improve news literacy on social media

Sources of Articles in "Fakey"

Game Mechanics in "Fakey"

- Increase in the detection of articles from credible sources (when playing more than three rounds)
- No change in the detection of articles from sources with low credibility (when playing more than three rounds)
- Players reported the game was of use

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