Blount County Public Library to present panel “Real/Fake News: What’s the Difference?”

On Thursday, Nov. 9, a panel called “Real/Fake News: What’s the Difference?” will be held at the Blount County Public Library in the Sharon Lawson room. The panel is being made available by the League of Women Voters. It will cover three main topics:  how fake news is generated; how to determine if the news is accurate; and tips on discerning the truth in news. The panelist will be Rachel McClelland, Director of Communications at the University of Tennessee College of Law and instructor in the UT College of Communications; Deborah Fisher, Executive Director of the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government and former Senior News Editor for  “The Tennessean;” Melissa Erickson, Multi-platform Producer at WBIR-TV and former Reporter for “The Daily Times;” and Thomas Fraser, Senior Content Specialist with Ripley Public Relations.

“I would be intrigued to see what information I could learn,” said Maryville College student Ally Clodfelter. “I feel like it would be valuable in interpreting today’s many sometimes crazy, rarely credible sources.”

The panel will run from 7-8:30 p.m. and there will be time for questions after. It is an opportunity for members of the community to become more aware of the daily news and how to interpret what they read or watch.