The Power of Data Journalism: The Effects of Data-Driven News Reports in Correcting Climate Change Misinformation

The alarming increase of misinformation poses a significant threat to complex issues such as climate change, especially considering the proliferation of new media, which has significantly contributed to the dissemination and reception of misinformation. The present study aimed to examine how a corr...

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Main Authors: Mahmoud-Mohamed-Abdel Haleem, Hagar Talaat-Alnajjar
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Universidad de Navarra 2025-04-01
Series:Communication & Society (Formerly Comunicación y Sociedad)
Subjects:
Online Access:https://revistas.unav.edu/index.php/communication-and-society/article/view/50875
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author Mahmoud-Mohamed-Abdel Haleem
Hagar Talaat-Alnajjar
author_facet Mahmoud-Mohamed-Abdel Haleem
Hagar Talaat-Alnajjar
author_sort Mahmoud-Mohamed-Abdel Haleem
collection DOAJ
description The alarming increase of misinformation poses a significant threat to complex issues such as climate change, especially considering the proliferation of new media, which has significantly contributed to the dissemination and reception of misinformation. The present study aimed to examine how a corrective news article featuring data visualisation influences the reduction of misconceptions and the correction of misinformation regarding climate change after readers are exposed to the stimulus. The study investigated how readers’ preexisting beliefs influence the mitigation of misconceptions when exposed to news content. This study adds to ongoing conversations about creating corrective news reports to reduce the negative impacts of misinformation surrounding climate change. A quasi-experimental study was carried out online involving 186 members of the Egyptian community. The results indicate that data journalism can reduce the cognitive dissonance that causes audiences to accept misinformation. The findings indicate that data-driven journalism utilising interactive graphs is effective in altering the public’s existing beliefs and knowledge while also demonstrating its ability to persuade and counter misinformation. The audience with low to moderate prior knowledge of climate change may demonstrate a diminished ability to thoroughly analyse and compare the information presented.
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publishDate 2025-04-01
publisher Universidad de Navarra
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series Communication & Society (Formerly Comunicación y Sociedad)
spelling doaj-art-0e32a54e1d3f4e54a56d145d1331f0c52025-08-20T02:06:46ZengUniversidad de NavarraCommunication & Society (Formerly Comunicación y Sociedad)2386-78762025-04-0138110.15581/003.38.1.020The Power of Data Journalism: The Effects of Data-Driven News Reports in Correcting Climate Change MisinformationMahmoud-Mohamed-Abdel Haleem0Hagar Talaat-Alnajjar1Ain Shams UniversityStardom University The alarming increase of misinformation poses a significant threat to complex issues such as climate change, especially considering the proliferation of new media, which has significantly contributed to the dissemination and reception of misinformation. The present study aimed to examine how a corrective news article featuring data visualisation influences the reduction of misconceptions and the correction of misinformation regarding climate change after readers are exposed to the stimulus. The study investigated how readers’ preexisting beliefs influence the mitigation of misconceptions when exposed to news content. This study adds to ongoing conversations about creating corrective news reports to reduce the negative impacts of misinformation surrounding climate change. A quasi-experimental study was carried out online involving 186 members of the Egyptian community. The results indicate that data journalism can reduce the cognitive dissonance that causes audiences to accept misinformation. The findings indicate that data-driven journalism utilising interactive graphs is effective in altering the public’s existing beliefs and knowledge while also demonstrating its ability to persuade and counter misinformation. The audience with low to moderate prior knowledge of climate change may demonstrate a diminished ability to thoroughly analyse and compare the information presented. https://revistas.unav.edu/index.php/communication-and-society/article/view/50875Misinformationreaders’ misperceptionprior beliefsprior knowledgedata journalismclimate change
spellingShingle Mahmoud-Mohamed-Abdel Haleem
Hagar Talaat-Alnajjar
The Power of Data Journalism: The Effects of Data-Driven News Reports in Correcting Climate Change Misinformation
Communication & Society (Formerly Comunicación y Sociedad)
Misinformation
readers’ misperception
prior beliefs
prior knowledge
data journalism
climate change
title The Power of Data Journalism: The Effects of Data-Driven News Reports in Correcting Climate Change Misinformation
title_full The Power of Data Journalism: The Effects of Data-Driven News Reports in Correcting Climate Change Misinformation
title_fullStr The Power of Data Journalism: The Effects of Data-Driven News Reports in Correcting Climate Change Misinformation
title_full_unstemmed The Power of Data Journalism: The Effects of Data-Driven News Reports in Correcting Climate Change Misinformation
title_short The Power of Data Journalism: The Effects of Data-Driven News Reports in Correcting Climate Change Misinformation
title_sort power of data journalism the effects of data driven news reports in correcting climate change misinformation
topic Misinformation
readers’ misperception
prior beliefs
prior knowledge
data journalism
climate change
url https://revistas.unav.edu/index.php/communication-and-society/article/view/50875
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