It can be quite difficult to separate facts from well-constructed misinformation, especially when discussing global warming. So a new app is stepping in to help users identify fake news – by first creating it.
Cranky Uncle, currently in development and seeking to raise fifteen thousand dollars through crowdfunding, is aimed at exposing non-credible information about climate change to users, as a method towards helping them become better equipped against disinformation.
“It basically stops misinformation from spreading, from people passing it on,” says the Australian John Cook, one of the creators of the game and a climate change communications expert working in the United States.
With climate change posing a major threat worldwide – and with many people actively denying the existence of the crisis – Cook’s aim is to help others debunk false information in a fun and informative way. He says that students have responded positively when testing the game and learned about more than just climate change, adding, “We found that playing this game about climate disinformation inoculated them against any kind of misinformation.”
