Self-governance ends when citizens no longer care about truth, no longer insist on factual information from those running for public office, and are no longer able to distinguish between fact and lies.

Truth is knowable, and in its absence, democracy dies.

Unfortunately, truth is hard to come by in our current era of social media, where algorithms feed us the sensational over the factual and push us toward extremism. Social media platforms don’t encourage complex, multilayered views of the wider world; these monetized platforms often push us into increasingly narrow boxes and profit from extremist content. For this and many other reasons — including the decline of newspapers and the far right’s demonization of the free press as “The Enemy of the People” — Americans no longer operate on a common set of facts that inform our democracy.

It’s up to individuals to fight for facts and insist on truth. That’s easier said than done, but here are a few tools to fight misinformation:

• Embrace quality journalism. The phrase “fake news” started as a rallying cry to stop the journalists from asking real questions of those in power (or those who would take power). Demonizing quality journalism and credible journalists who are sometimes risking physical violence to report the news has weakened society and is typically an indicator of democracy in peril. Journalists don’t always get it right right away — the difference is that professional journalists operate using professional standards of conduct rooted in wanting to understand and report the truth. The Washington Post, The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, National Public Radio and dozens of national outlets staff large professional newsrooms that have the experience and resources (and yes, legal power) to uncover truths. Thousands of professional journalists at small and midsized papers around this country are doing the same, but with extremely limited resources. When you can, support and subscribe to quality journalism outlets.
• Fix the algorithm. Social media firms like Meta (Facebook) act as the world’s largest publishers, without any of the responsibilities (adherence to truth). Several groups such as the Center for Humane Technology, the Center for Countering Digital Hate and a coalition called Change The Terms are pushing for Meta and others to “fix the algorithm” and stop the unchecked monetization of hate speech and misinformation by social media platforms.
• Fact check before you hit “send.” Don’t play a role in disseminating lies. If you’re unsure whether something you’ve seen on Facebook or Twitter is factual, do a little research. Here are three easy fact-checking tools:
  1. FactCheck.org is a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania. The nonpartisan, nonprofit “consumer advocate” website aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics by fact-checking TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews and news releases.
  2. PolitiFact.com, the nonprofit Poynter Institute’s fact-checking website takes on some of the biggest political questions of the day.
  3. Common Sense Media offers a nice demo on how Google’s reverse image search tool can be used to find background information on an image. Basically, you can drag and drop an image into the images.google.com search bar, paste a URL containing the image into the Google image search bar, or right-click on an image when using the Chrome browser. More advanced tools are needed to research geolocation or authenticate an image, but knowing where else the image appears offers clues about where it originated or whether it may have been altered.
• Install a fact-checker on your parents’ browser. OK, so fighting disinformation is likely more complex than installing a fact-checker extension such as NewsGuard on your (or your loved one’s) internet browser. But tools like this are popping up in an effort to help stop companies from advertising on disreputable websites, etc., and may eventually be helpful in fighting outright lies. Vox for one is skeptical, because most who traffic in misinformation don’t bother with fact checks.
• Encourage critical thinking skills, such as asking these basic questions (courtesy of John Oliver) before passing around conspiracy theories: 1. Is there a rational non-conspiracy explanation? 2. Has this been held up to scrutiny by experts (and if so, what did those experts say)? 3. How plausible is this conspiracy as a practical matter?

• Pay attention to extremist laws in your own state. VotingRightsLab.org advocates for free and fair elections via expert analysis, research and innovation. Track election-related legislation and existing laws in all 50 states and D.C. in the State Voting Rights Tracker.