Lakehead University professor Michael Hoechsmann says fake material generated by artificial intelligence is growing online, making it harder for people to determine what is real and what isn’t, and forcing the public to educate themselves on how to fact-check information properly and not believe the first Google result
THUNDER BAY — The heartwarming story of a 73-year-old volunteer parking attendant reserving spaces at St. Joseph’s Hospital for families in health crisis was widely shared by Thunder Bay residents on social media over the past week, however that man does not exist.
St. Joseph’s Care Group confirms the social media post is not factual and did not originate from the health-care institute.
The post was created by a Facebook page called Astonishing, which states in its description that “Some stories here are fictional and created for inspiration and entertainment” and that images are AI-generated or royalty-free.
With the amount of AI-generated material on the Internet growing, Michael Hoechsmann, a professor in Lakehead University’s faculty of education, said the world is in an era of distrust and information overload.
“There’s lots of stuff floating around, some of it true, some of it not true and some of it somewhere between those two places,” he said.
Readers should learn to double check the source of information, Hoechsmann said, noting they should look for multiple sources to confirm it’s true.
He added that gatekeeper functions, like trusted media sources, have been eroded and “what has happened is a lot of unwelcome guests have joined the party, which are also information creators and providers.”
“We should be aware that anything that strikes us as uncanny, unusual and perhaps unlikely is something we should be triangulating, we should be checked again,” Hoechsmann said.
“If it stimulates your emotional response – you react with anger or sadness or what have you, that is an early indicator you should be double-checking the source is reliable. It’s most reliable if you can find multiple sources.”
“We want to make sure our community knows where to find accurate and trustworthy information about St. Joseph’s Care Group,” Kim Callaghan, director of communications and government relations for SJCG, said in an emailed statement to Dougall Media.
“For the latest updates, stories of care, and news about our services and work in the community, please visit our official channels on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn, or our website at sjcg.net.
“These are the best places to stay informed about what’s happening across our sites, programs, and services.”
– With files from Sheri Leviski-Kotyk