School of Journalism, Media and Communication

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Browsing School of Journalism, Media and Communication by Author "Erinah Gloria Nanyunja"

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    Level of awareness of fake news amongst univerisity students: a case study at Uganda Christian University
    (Uganda Christian University, 2026-04-10) Erinah Gloria Nanyunja
    Digital communication's rapid growth has led to the spread of misinformation, and therefore fake news is getting more and more serious in the academic world. University students, who are mostly depending on the internet for academic, social, and personal information, are the ones who are mostly misled by the content. This research examines the level of awareness of fake news among students of Uganda Christian University (UCU), with a special interest in how knowledgeable students are about the issue, how often they come across fake news, how they respond to it, and the main sources of content they get their information from. A descriptive research design is used in the study employing qualitative methods to provide a thorough understanding of the issue. The data was gathered using structured questionnaires and interviews administered to a representative sample of UCU students from various faculties and different years of study. The initial analysis indicates that a considerable number of students are aware of the fake news concept in general but still have difficulty recognizing credible sources, especially on social media. The results also indicate that students are actually often confronted with fake news, the major sources being WhatsApp, X/Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok. As for the responses, some students share the information and later try to find out if it is true, often because they think it is urgent, or due to peer pressure. The research also points out that social media is the main exposure source, followed by online blogs. This research is a significant addition to the present knowledgeable digital literacy and misinformation area of interest as it points out the existing gaps in the students' verification abilities and awareness levels. The outcome of the investigation underlines the very necessity of the digital literacy programs in the whole university which is going to be directed towards providing the students with the critical evaluation skills that are needed for the proper handling of the online information.