Deep Breath: A Machine Learning Browser Extension to Tackle Online Misinformation

TL;DR

This paper introduces a machine learning browser extension that detects sensationalist headlines to warn users about potential misinformation, aiming to promote critical thinking and reduce the impact of online falsehoods.

Contribution

It presents a novel system combining machine learning and human-centered design to identify and warn about misleading online content in real-time.

Findings

Model predicts headline sensationalism with high accuracy

Browser extension effectively alerts users to potential misinformation

Promising results for future development of online misinformation detection

Abstract

Over the past decade, the media landscape has seen a radical shift. As more of the public stay informed of current events via online sources, competition has grown as outlets vie for attention. This competition has prompted some online outlets to publish sensationalist and alarmist content to grab readers' attention. Such practices may threaten democracy by distorting the truth and misleading readers about the nature of events. This paper proposes a novel system for detecting, processing, and warning users about misleading content online to combat the threats posed by misinformation. By training a machine learning model on an existing dataset of 32,000 clickbait news article headlines, the model predicts how sensationalist a headline is and then interfaces with a web browser extension which constructs a unique content warning notification based on existing design principles and incorporates the models' prediction. This research makes a novel contribution to machine learning and human-centred security with promising findings for future research. By warning users when they may be viewing misinformation, it is possible to prevent spontaneous reactions, helping users to take a deep breath and approach online media with a clear mind.