The effect of message credibility on media use and perception of fake news among students
Fake news is a major concern globally. Numerous news articles worldwide have reported on the spread of fake news in multiple arenas. Malaysia, similarly, has been covering the proliferation of fake news in the media. A Fake News Bill was passed in Parliament, at record time, in the hope of attaining...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Communication Department, Faculty of Modern Languages, Universiti Putra Malaysia
2018
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| Online Access: | http://irep.iium.edu.my/69109/ http://irep.iium.edu.my/69109/7/69109%20The%20Effect%20of%20Message%20Credibility.pdf |
| _version_ | 1848787057957142528 |
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| author | Ahmad Elyass Hussain, Souhaila Kilagwa, Rehema Mohd Zaali, Yusnita Wok, Saodah |
| author_facet | Ahmad Elyass Hussain, Souhaila Kilagwa, Rehema Mohd Zaali, Yusnita Wok, Saodah |
| author_sort | Ahmad Elyass Hussain, Souhaila |
| building | IIUM Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Fake news is a major concern globally. Numerous news articles worldwide have reported on the spread of fake news in multiple arenas. Malaysia, similarly, has been covering the proliferation of fake news in the media. A Fake News Bill was passed in Parliament, at record time, in the hope of attaining preventive measures to counter the spread of fake news (the bill was repealed four months later). This study aims to determine students’ perception of fake news in the context of their media usage and message credibility. Specifically, it aims to determine the relationship between media use, message credibility and perception of fake news; and to analyse the mediating effect of message credibility on media use and the perception of fake news. Fake news, in this context, is defined as deliberate misinformation spread by traditional or social media. The research utilizes the Media Dependency Theory in explaining the relationship between the audiences, media and the larger social system. The theoretical framework assumes that during times of conflict or uncertainty, in this case before the General Election 2018, audiences are likely to be more dependent on the media for information. It employs a quantitative research design using the survey method. 237 students from the Department of Communication, International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) participated in the study. Findings show that there are significant relationships among media use, message credibility and fake news. The Media Dependency Theory is supported in this study. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T17:18:53Z |
| format | Article |
| id | iium-69109 |
| institution | International Islamic University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T17:18:53Z |
| publishDate | 2018 |
| publisher | Communication Department, Faculty of Modern Languages, Universiti Putra Malaysia |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | iium-691092019-01-11T07:10:32Z http://irep.iium.edu.my/69109/ The effect of message credibility on media use and perception of fake news among students Ahmad Elyass Hussain, Souhaila Kilagwa, Rehema Mohd Zaali, Yusnita Wok, Saodah H Social Sciences (General) H61.8 Communication of information Fake news is a major concern globally. Numerous news articles worldwide have reported on the spread of fake news in multiple arenas. Malaysia, similarly, has been covering the proliferation of fake news in the media. A Fake News Bill was passed in Parliament, at record time, in the hope of attaining preventive measures to counter the spread of fake news (the bill was repealed four months later). This study aims to determine students’ perception of fake news in the context of their media usage and message credibility. Specifically, it aims to determine the relationship between media use, message credibility and perception of fake news; and to analyse the mediating effect of message credibility on media use and the perception of fake news. Fake news, in this context, is defined as deliberate misinformation spread by traditional or social media. The research utilizes the Media Dependency Theory in explaining the relationship between the audiences, media and the larger social system. The theoretical framework assumes that during times of conflict or uncertainty, in this case before the General Election 2018, audiences are likely to be more dependent on the media for information. It employs a quantitative research design using the survey method. 237 students from the Department of Communication, International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) participated in the study. Findings show that there are significant relationships among media use, message credibility and fake news. The Media Dependency Theory is supported in this study. Communication Department, Faculty of Modern Languages, Universiti Putra Malaysia 2018 Article PeerReviewed application/pdf en http://irep.iium.edu.my/69109/7/69109%20The%20Effect%20of%20Message%20Credibility.pdf Ahmad Elyass Hussain, Souhaila and Kilagwa, Rehema and Mohd Zaali, Yusnita and Wok, Saodah (2018) The effect of message credibility on media use and perception of fake news among students. Human Communication A Journal of the Pacific and Asian Communication Association, 1 (2). pp. 1-21. E-ISSN 2636-9206 http://pacascholars.com/journal2.html |
| spellingShingle | H Social Sciences (General) H61.8 Communication of information Ahmad Elyass Hussain, Souhaila Kilagwa, Rehema Mohd Zaali, Yusnita Wok, Saodah The effect of message credibility on media use and perception of fake news among students |
| title | The effect of message credibility on media use and perception of fake news among students |
| title_full | The effect of message credibility on media use and perception of fake news among students |
| title_fullStr | The effect of message credibility on media use and perception of fake news among students |
| title_full_unstemmed | The effect of message credibility on media use and perception of fake news among students |
| title_short | The effect of message credibility on media use and perception of fake news among students |
| title_sort | effect of message credibility on media use and perception of fake news among students |
| topic | H Social Sciences (General) H61.8 Communication of information |
| url | http://irep.iium.edu.my/69109/ http://irep.iium.edu.my/69109/ http://irep.iium.edu.my/69109/7/69109%20The%20Effect%20of%20Message%20Credibility.pdf |