: These are stories that are deliberately fabricated to gain more website visitors and increase advertising revenue for websites. These stories use sensationalist headlines to grab attention and drive click-throughs to the publisher website, normally at the expense of truth or accuracy.

: Stories that are created to deliberately mislead audiences, promote a biased point of view or particular political cause or agenda.

: Lots of websites and social media accounts publish fake news stories for entertainment. For example; The Onion, Waterford Whispers, The Daily Mash, etc.

: Sometimes reporters or journalists may publish a story with unreliable information or without checking all of the facts which can mislead audiences. For example, during the U.S. elections, fashion retailer Urban Outfitters published an Election Day Guide, the guide contained incorrect information telling voters that they needed a ‘voter registration card’. This is not required by any state in the U.S. for voting.

: Stories that are not completely false can be distorted using misleading or sensationalist headlines. These types of news can spread quickly on social media sites where only headlines and small snippets of the full article are displayed on audience newsfeeds.

: Many people are drawn to news or stories that confirm their own beliefs or biases and fake news can prey on these biases. Social media news feeds tend to display news and articles that they think we will like based on our personalised searches.

: Impersonation of genuine sources, for example by using the branding of an established news agency.

: False information that is spread, regardless of whether there is intent to mislead.

: Deliberately misleading or biased information; manipulated narrative or facts.

: Purposefully crafted, sensational, emotionally charged, misleading or totally fabricated information that mimics the form of mainstream news.

: Advertising or PR disguised as editorial content