Fighting Misinformation
An Interactive Guide
What Are We Talking About?
Misinformation
False or misleading information that is shared **unknowingly**. Examples include sharing a meme you think is true, spreading a rumor, or misinterpreting satire as fact.
Disinformation
False or misleading information that is **purposely created and distributed** to deceive. Examples include planted false news stories, lies, or presenting real information out of context.
Let’s Analyze Some Examples
Meme Analysis #1: The 55% Military Budget
You may have seen this meme or a similar one. It makes a powerful claim about U.S. spending priorities. But is it accurate?
The Whole Story
This meme is a classic example of disinformation that uses a real number out of context. The “55%” figure only refers to **discretionary spending**, which is the part of the federal budget debated by Congress each year.
However, discretionary spending is only about **27% of the total federal budget**. The rest is **nondiscretionary** (or mandatory) spending on programs like Social Security and Medicare.
So, the real number is: 55% of 27% = ~15% of the total federal budget is spent on defense. That’s a big difference from 55%!
Meme Analysis #2: Tax Dollars & Priorities
This graphic paints an even more dramatic picture. Let’s look closer.
Missing Context
Like the first meme, this graphic **only shows discretionary spending**. It completely ignores the massive nondiscretionary budget where most spending on Health, Housing, and Education-related programs actually occurs.
If we included nondiscretionary spending, the chart would look completely different. For example, spending on healthcare (including Medicare) is far larger than defense spending.
This is disinformation because it purposely omits context to create a misleading narrative.
Meme Analysis #3: Healthcare vs. Defense
This cartoon suggests a huge imbalance in spending. Let’s check the numbers.
The Real Budget
Based on 2021 US federal budget data, this cartoon is highly misleading. Here’s the actual breakdown:
- Healthcare: ~14% (plus another 12% for Medicare) = 26% Total
- National Defense: ~13%
In reality, federal spending on healthcare is roughly twice as large as spending on national defense. An honest meme would show the doctor as twice the size of the soldier!
Test Your Knowledge
1. Of the four following categories, which does the federal government spend the most on?
2. Of the following, which category of spending is the largest?
3. If we combine “Social Security” and “Medicare” into a “Senior Citizens Benefits” category, how much of the federal budget does it represent?
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