For those involved in mass media-the journalists on the front lines, the professors who teach about it, and the people involved in publishing it-the idea that fake news exists and is on the rise is old news. And yet, post-election 2016, it is becoming a hot topic across all outlets. In the days after the presidential election, pollsters, pundits, and others were scrambling to figure out just how the predictions of a Hillary Clinton win were so far off (although, according to a Nov. 29 post by The New York Times, Clinton's popular vote lead stands at more than 2 million votes, matching her predicted pre-election edge of 2 percentage points). While a plethora of events contributed to the Electoral College outcome that stands to put her opponent in the Oval Office at the end of January, stories about how fake news may have swayed voters to choose one candidate over another continue to proliferate.
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