Canadians are confident when it comes to recognizing fake news online without help from the government, a survey shows, but they are not so sure when it comes to AI-generated content.
Results from federal focus groups found that “a number of participants express reservations about the government presenting itself as an ‘authority’ on disinformation.”
“Most participants said they feel confident they can tell the difference between real and false information you see on the internet, at least most of the time,” the publication said.
Participants were also hesitant that the federal government “would be declaring what is true or not.”
The results were compiled from questionnaires given to eight focus groups from different regions across the country. The report cost $45,192 and was contracted to Ekos Research Associates.
Canadians have been handling “misinformation” online for some time, with a large number saying they have started verifying what they’re reading.
Defining ‘Misinformation’
In 2023, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke on the issue of misinformation to a group of students at the University of Ottawa.He noted there was a difference between “misinformation” and “disinformation.”
“‘Misinformation is a deliberate choice to spread and share falsehoods for a particular purpose,” he said, adding some reasons could be personal, political, or “creating chaos.”
Deciding on what’s true and what’s not requires trust in experts, Mr. Trudeau told the students.
‘Misinformation’ and AI
The rise of artificial intelligence or AI-generated content has left many Canadians feeling “vulnerable,” according to research from Ipsos.Canadians are the most worried about the impact that AI will have on false information online. Sixty-four percent said that the technology will make misinformation worse. That was the highest among the countries surveyed.
“Canadians have seen a decline in the number of local media and news outlets. They do not feel that our governments are up to the task of managing increasingly complicated issues. And their views toward tech and science are fairly utilitarian — they support it but also want to control it,” Ipsos Canada public affairs president Mike Colledge said.
Mr. Colledge added that Canadians likely feel there are not enough checks and balances as the number of media outlets drops.
“It’s a perfect storm that leaves them feeling very vulnerable.”
The survey was conducted by Maru Public Opinion on behalf of The Canadian Journalism Foundation.
Over half of Canadians (58 percent) believe they have uncovered AI-generated content in the last six months that was misleading or false, the survey said.
Seventy-one percent of Canadians say that the government will not be able to regulate companies that create AI content online.