As to be expected of a small campus community, information spreads — some of it true, other bits not so much. Information will spread quickly and before you are even aware of it, you’ll be hearing rumors about a person’s roommate, ex-partner or professor. 

Though these rumors will often claim someone had said or done something, there’s always an emphasis that the offending action is not public knowledge. 

The people telling you those rumors may feel like they’re getting you a scoop of some crazy information.

Misinformation about politics, world news and even possible events within the school are also all subject to their own obvious cases of bias. 

At Point Park, the number of School of Communication students and media literacy classes in the university can lessen the risk of misinformation. 

As a mostly socially-aware student body, our campus can combat misinformation amongst students. 

Although it is tempting to continue the cycle of sharing information you heard just because you want to feel included in the mix, the importance of verifying your sources cannot be underestimated. 

The process of checking articles, statements and press releases can turn something minor into a complete fiasco. 

Additionally, as said from the wise Trixie Mattel, the idea of “spilling the tea” is not impressive. This is true even if the misinformation is only about a single student or a few students. 

Spilling the tea about something you took offense to is only an excuse to not be confrontational or have a direct conversation with a person. When there are problems with someone, talk to them directly before airing out information that isn’t true.

If you hear something about a person you do not even know and there is no strong evidence, then why take every single word said about that person at face value? Why trust anything this person is saying then?

As with most subjects, misinformation is dependent on the information, the person, source and any other factor which may impact the situation. Each person should practice caution when reposting or retelling information which is not entirely their own.

This is also true with information on social media, whether it seems important  or silly. When you hit that repost button on Twitter or put something on your Instagram story while writing “so sad,” you need to still fact check what information you have.

It is extremely easy for information to spread in a student body of 3,500 people. 

After all, how many people reading this piece have heard information about me without having met me in person? Can you verify any of this information?

The spreading of misinformation on campus will not help anyone. If you are displeased or upset with a situation, it is your job to keep yourself responsible. 

But how do you do this, opinions editor?

One choice you could make to find  First, find out if what you’re saying is necessary. If it needs to be said, find out if it’s true. Lastly, be careful about who you’re sharing the information with. Is it relevant for everybody, your whole friend group or only for a select few?

The questions of do I need to say this right now, what are the exact details of what I am saying, and does this make a person look bad without proof of information? 

Obviously, there are exceptions to this. If a person is misogynistic, sexist, racist, homophobic, or transphobic, then this should be shared to protect a person’s safety in all scenarios.

A real risk is disinformation, where people purposefully leave out information for their own self-interest. 

People’s transparency and trustworthiness is key when participating in discourse of relevant conversation.  Being honest with yourself and also being truthful with the information you share will always be a smart choice to make.