Misinformation, disinformation, malinformation, and propaganda have a long history in political communications.

But it's only recently that these words – along with "fake news" – have become part of everyday conversation.

Conspiracy theories have also become more widespread in recent years, especially since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Why is this happening now? Which is most dangerous? And what are the differences between these seemingly similar things?

Let's start by looking at the reasons behind the recent rise in misinformation and disinformation.

Misinformation. Disinformation. Malinformation. Fake news. Conspiracy theories.

What are the differences? And are they always linked?

As we'll see, there's a lot of crossover between these concepts.

Misinformation definitions

In "Combating fake news, disinformation, and misinformation: Experimental evidence for media literacy education," Theodora Dame Adjin-Tettey says that misinformation is "misleading information created or disseminated without manipulative or malicious intent."

The definition of misinformation in a book chapter by Lucinda Austin et al. on managing misinformation and conflicting information in a public relations context also focuses on the honest intent of the sender. The authors say misinformation is "false information shared without the intention of harm."

In a health communication context, Xiaoli Nan, Yuan Wang, and Kathryn Thier define misinformation slightly differently. Citing Brony Swire-Thompson and David Lazer, they say misinformation is "information that is contrary to the epistemic consensus of the scientific community regarding a phenomenon."

Other definitions of misinformation are broader and include fake news, conspiracy theories, propaganda, and clickbait as forms of misinformation rather than disinformation:

"Misinformation is, by definition, false or misleading information," says Jeroen de Ridder in "What's so bad about misinformation?"

Misinformation example: A high-profile politician shares a news story that has a misleading headline. The publisher later corrects this. However, the politician is unaware of the correction, and people continue to share the original post with the incorrect headline.

Disinformation definitions

In contrast to misinformation, the intent of those who generate and share disinformation is to deceive.

In 2017's The Disinformation Age, author Eric Cheyfitz cites the Oxford English Dictionary definition of disinformation: "The dissemination of deliberately false information, [especially] when supplied by a government or its agent to a foreign power or to the media, with the intention of influencing the policies or opinions of those who receive it."

More recent definitions tend to highlight how it's not just government agents that produce and spread disinformation, but corporations and individuals too.

In the 2022 book chapter, Russian Disinformation: Old Tactics – New Narratives, in Disinformation, Narratives and Memory Politics in Russia and Belarus, Agnieszka Legucka highlights the European Commission's definition of disinformation:

"Disinformation includes all forms of false, inaccurate, or misleading information designed, presented, and promoted to intentionally cause public harm or for profit."

Legucka adds that the goals of disinformation are:

1. deception
2. profit gain
3. an intent to harm

"Actors ranging from corporations, government agencies, and individuals have been identified as creators of fake news and disinformation," adds Theodora Dame Adjin-Tettey.

Disinformation example: An organization with investments in the construction industry fabricates a research study about the economic benefits of low-density housing.

Malinformation

Closely related to disinformation is "malinformation."

This is information based on some aspect of reality but shared out of context to create harm to a person or organization.

Malinformation example: A political party produces a campaign leaflet that includes edited quotes from a rival politician presented out of context.

Fake news definitions

There are two dimensions to "fake news":

1. Fake news as a genre (disinformation or misinformation disguised as journalistic news)
2. Fake news as a label (use of the term as a tool to attack or delegitimize news media)

1. Fake news as a genre

When misinformation and disinformation are packaged in a news format, they can be described as "fake news."

The definition of fake news that Theodora Dame Adjin-Tettey cites is "news articles that are intentionally and verifiably false, and could mislead readers."

They class each of the six categories of fake news on two dimensions – the author’s intention to deceive, and facticity, which refers to the degree that fake news relies on facts.

• News satire has high facticity and a low intention to deceive
• News parody has low facticity and a low intention to deceive
• News fabrication has low facticity and a high intention to deceive
• Advertising and public relations (disguised as news), propaganda, and photo manipulation have low facticity and a high intention to deceive

2. Fake news as a label

The term "fake news" is negative. The authors of "Fake news as a two-dimensional phenomenon: a framework and research agenda," Jana Laura Egelhofer and Sophie Lecheler, say this allows political actors to discredit news media, and portray it "as institutions that purposely spread disinformation with the intention to deceive."

They say that politicians criticizing news media is not a new phenomenon. But it now happens more often, following the introduction of the "fake news" label.

This can threaten the freedom of the press and threaten democracy.

Rumors and conspiracy theories

In "Disinformation by Design: The Use of Evidence Collages and Platform Filtering in a Media Manipulation Campaign," P. M. Krafft and Joan Donovan cite this definition of a rumor: "an unverified proposition for [a] belief that bears topical relevance for persons actively involved in its dissemination."

They say that "for a rumor to occur the situation must be uncertain, and people must care about the content of the rumor."

So, how is a rumor different from a conspiracy theory?

The difference is that a conspiracy theory aims to explain powerful people's secret plans or schemes. Many conspiracy theories do this in a way that's unwarranted or dangerous and ignore contradictory evidence that disproves the theory.

Links with misinformation and disinformation

Rumors and conspiracy theories often originate from content that isn't supported by the best available evidence. This includes misinformation, disinformation, and fake news. However, they can originate from factual content, too.

Misinformation, disinformation, and fake news can help accelerate the spread of rumors and conspiracy theories.

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