Within Accuracy Nudge
When More Attention Does Not Mean Better Judgement
Designs that make news posts more noticeable can raise engagement without improving truth discernment, especially when attention is not aimed at verification.
On this page
- Colored borders and news salience
- Engagement versus accuracy
- Design features that point toward verification
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Introduction
Attention-grabbing labels on news posts can seem like an obvious solution to misinformation. If a platform makes news more visually prominent—using coloured borders, badges, highlights, or other attention-directing features—users should notice it more and perhaps think more carefully about it. However, research suggests that this assumption is often wrong. Increasing attention to a post is not the same as increasing attention to whether the post is true.
This distinction matters for accuracy nudges. The most effective nudges work by directing users’ attention towards verification and truthfulness before they share. By contrast, design features that merely make news stand out can increase engagement without improving judgement. In some cases, they may even amplify the visibility of both accurate and inaccurate content alike. The key question is not whether users notice a post, but what they notice about it. [Nature]nature.comShifting attention to accuracy can reduce misinformation…by G Pennycook · 2021 · Cited by 1605 — The results show that subtly sh…
When Salience Becomes the Wrong Signal
The central mechanism behind this backfire risk is attentional misdirection. Social media users have limited attention, and platforms constantly compete for it. If an interface feature makes a news item more visually salient, users may spend more time on it, click it more often, or share it more readily. Yet none of those actions necessarily involve checking its accuracy.
Research on misinformation sharing repeatedly finds that many users already care about truth but often fail to consider it at the moment of sharing. The problem is frequently not a complete absence of concern for accuracy; it is that attention is being pulled towards other considerations such as novelty, emotional reaction, social signalling, or partisan relevance. Accuracy nudges work because they redirect attention specifically towards truthfulness. Simply increasing the visibility of a post does not accomplish the same goal. [Nature+2PMC]nature.comShifting attention to accuracy can reduce misinformation…by G Pennycook · 2021 · Cited by 1605 — The results show that subtly sh…
This creates a design trap. A platform may observe that highlighted posts receive more engagement and conclude that the intervention is successful. Yet higher engagement can coexist with unchanged or even poorer discernment if users are reacting to the post’s prominence rather than evaluating its reliability.
Colored Borders and News Salience
One of the clearest demonstrations comes from research examining coloured borders around news content in simulated social media feeds. The idea was straightforward: visually distinguish news posts from ordinary social content so users recognise them as information that may deserve more careful attention.
The results revealed an important complication. Adding coloured borders increased engagement with news posts regardless of whether those posts were true or false. The borders succeeded in making news more noticeable, but they did not automatically help users distinguish reliable information from misinformation. In effect, the intervention amplified attention to news as a category rather than directing attention to verification. [OSF]osf.ioExamining accuracy-prompt efficacy in combination with…by V Bhardwaj · Cited by 10 — We also find that adding colored borders aroun…
This finding highlights a broader principle. Visual emphasis can function as a spotlight. A spotlight helps people see something more clearly, but it does not tell them how to evaluate what they see. If the highlighted content includes falsehoods alongside accurate reporting, increased visibility alone may simply increase exposure and interaction.
Engagement Versus Accuracy
The tension between engagement and accuracy sits at the heart of the problem.
Social platforms often measure success through metrics such as clicks, reactions, comments, viewing time, and shares. Attention-grabbing labels frequently improve these metrics because they make content harder to ignore. Research across digital media consistently shows that visual features that attract attention tend to increase user engagement. [Notre Dame News]news.nd.eduNotre Dame NewsHigh color complexity in social media images proves more…30 Oct 2024 — Posts containing complex images with more varied…
However, engagement and truth discernment are different outcomes. A user who comments on a story, shares it, or spends longer looking at it has not necessarily evaluated its credibility. In some situations, increased engagement can even give misleading signals of legitimacy. People often use popularity and visibility as shortcuts when judging information. Highly visible content can appear more important, urgent, or worthy of attention regardless of its factual quality.
The danger is particularly acute during fast-moving news events. When users see a prominently marked news post, they may interpret the visual emphasis as a cue that the content deserves immediate attention. The resulting sense of urgency can reduce the likelihood that they pause to verify the claim independently.
Why Attention Alone Is Not Enough
The evidence supporting accuracy nudges helps explain why generic attention-grabbing designs often underperform.
Studies led by Gordon Pennycook, David Rand, and colleagues found that subtle prompts encouraging people to think about accuracy improve the quality of news sharing decisions. The mechanism is not greater visibility. Instead, the prompt temporarily changes what users are thinking about when deciding whether to share. Accuracy becomes cognitively salient. [Nature+2PMC]nature.comShifting attention to accuracy can reduce misinformation…by G Pennycook · 2021 · Cited by 1605 — The results show that subtly sh…
This difference is crucial:
- Attention-focused designs ask users to notice content.
- Accuracy-focused designs ask users to evaluate content.
Both influence attention, but they direct it towards different targets.
A coloured border around a news story may increase the likelihood that someone looks at the post. An accuracy prompt asks whether the post is true. Only the second intervention explicitly links attention to verification.
Research comparing different interventions suggests that simply labelling or highlighting content often produces limited effects unless users are also encouraged to think about accuracy itself. Some studies even find that veracity labels have little independent impact and become more effective when combined with accuracy-oriented prompts. [OUP Academic]academic.oup.comOUP AcademicA cross-national examination of the effects of accuracy nudges…by M Chan · 2025 · Cited by 9 — This study examined whether…
Design Features That Point Toward Verification
The lesson is not that visual design is useless. Rather, design features work best when they direct attention towards evidence, source quality, or verification behaviour.
Several approaches are more closely aligned with this goal:
- Prompts asking users to consider whether a claim is accurate before sharing.
- Reminders that accuracy matters when evaluating information.
- Interface elements that encourage source inspection or fact-check consultation.
- Media literacy cues that focus attention on credibility indicators rather than mere visibility. [OECD+2PMC]oecd.orgMisinformation and disinformation (ENMisinformation and disinformation (EN)June 3, 2025 — This study tested the impact of two behaviourally- informed interventions on int…
These interventions attempt to change the question users are asking themselves. Instead of “Should I engage with this?” they encourage “Should I believe this?” or “Should I share this?”
That distinction may appear subtle, but it reflects a fundamentally different use of attention.
The Core Backfire Risk
The backfire risk arises when designers assume that more attention automatically produces better judgement. Evidence from misinformation research suggests otherwise. People can become highly attentive to content while remaining inattentive to its truthfulness.
For platforms seeking to improve information quality, the challenge is therefore not merely to increase salience. It is to make verification salient. Attention-grabbing labels can successfully elevate news above the surrounding noise, but unless they direct users towards evaluating accuracy, they may end up amplifying engagement with both reliable reporting and misinformation alike. [OSF+2Misinformation Review]osf.ioExamining accuracy-prompt efficacy in combination with…by V Bhardwaj · Cited by 10 — We also find that adding colored borders aroun…
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Endnotes
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Source: nature.com
Link: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03344-2Source snippet
Shifting attention to accuracy can reduce misinformation...by G Pennycook · 2021 · Cited by 1605 — The results show that subtly sh...
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Source: pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Title: PMCNudging Social Media toward Accuracy
Link: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9082967/Source snippet
Social Media toward Accuracy - PMC - NIHby G Pennycook · 2022 · Cited by 131 — We review research that shows how a simple nudge or prompt...
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Source: osf.io
Link: https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/6d98h_v1Source snippet
Examining accuracy-prompt efficacy in combination with...by V Bhardwaj · Cited by 10 — We also find that adding colored borders aroun...
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Source: pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Link: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12435698/Source snippet
choice and audience perceptions: Evidence from visual...by O Gasparyan · 2025 · Cited by 1 — In most cases, visual framing increases onl...
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Source: academic.oup.com
Link: https://academic.oup.com/jcmc/article/30/4/zmaf009/8173297Source snippet
OUP AcademicA cross-national examination of the effects of accuracy nudges...by M Chan · 2025 · Cited by 9 — This study examined whether...
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Source: oecd.org
Title: Misinformation and disinformation (EN)
Link: https://www.oecd.org/content/dam/oecd/en/publications/reports/2022/10/misinformation-and-disinformation_0a88bcef/b7709d4f-en.pdfSource snippet
Misinformation and disinformation (EN)June 3, 2025 — This study tested the impact of two behaviourally- informed interventions on int...
Published: June 3, 2025
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Source: nature.com
Link: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41599-025-04419-5Source snippet
Alexander Michael...Read more...
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Source: misinforeview.hks.harvard.edu
Link: https://misinforeview.hks.harvard.edu/article/examining-accuracy-prompt-efficacy-in-combination-with-using-colored-borders-to-differentiate-news-and-social-content-online/Source snippet
Misinformation ReviewExamining accuracy-prompt efficacy in combination with...by V Bhardwaj · 2023 · Cited by 11 — Our results suggest t...
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Source: news.nd.edu
Link: https://news.nd.edu/news/high-color-complexity-in-social-media-images-proves-more-eye-catching-increases-user-engagement/Source snippet
Notre Dame NewsHigh color complexity in social media images proves more...30 Oct 2024 — Posts containing complex images with more varied...
Additional References
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Source: researchgate.net
Link: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/383851293_Media_literacy_tips_promoting_reliable_news_improve_discernment_and_enhance_trust_in_traditional_mediaSource snippet
salience of misinformation distorts people's creditability accuracy. We conclude that the threats of the misinformation order may not jus...
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Source: researchgate.net
Link: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/396577725_Algorithmic_influence_and_media_legitimacy_a_systematic_review_of_social_media%27s_impact_on_news_productionSource snippet
a systematic review of social media's impact on news...14 Oct 2025 — Findings indicate algorithmic systems reconfigure gatekeeping, prio...
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Source: pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Title: PMC“I Think This News Is Accurate”: Endorsing Accuracy
Link: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10637098/Source snippet
by V Capraro · 2022 · Cited by 59 — Keywords: fake news, misinformation, accuracy salience, policy making... In sum, Study 1 reveals...
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Source: carnegieendowment.org
Title: countering disinformation effectively an evidence based policy guide
Link: https://carnegieendowment.org/russia-eurasia/research/2024/01/countering-disinformation-effectively-an-evidence-based-policy-guideSource snippet
Countering Disinformation Effectively: An Evidence-Based...31 Jan 2024 — For these and other reasons, a growing number of experts reject...
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Source: ide.mit.edu
Link: https://ide.mit.edu/sites/default/files/publications/Pennycook%20et%20al%20-%20Shifting%20attention%20to%20accuracy.pdfSource snippet
attention to accuracy can reduce misinformation...by G Pennycook · Cited by 1605 — Why do people share false and misleading news content...
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Source: cambridge.org
Link: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/american-political-science-review/article/sustaining-exposure-to-factchecks-misinformation-discernment-media-consumption-and-its-political-implications/C9CC3A0C7BAF7BADBEF0DA6350A875C8Source snippet
Misinformation Susceptibility and Fake News Detection: A Cross-Sectional Study in...Read more...
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Source: news.cornell.edu
Title: accuracy nudges decrease misinformation sharing left right
Link: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2024/04/accuracy-nudges-decrease-misinformation-sharing-left-rightSource snippet
Cornell ChronicleAccuracy 'nudges' decrease misinformation-sharing on left, right4 Apr 2024 — Other prior work has shown that reminding p...
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Source: researchgate.net
Title: 360387098 Nudging Social Media toward Accuracy
Link: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/360387098_Nudging_Social_Media_toward_AccuracySource snippet
(PDF) Nudging Social Media toward Accuracyby G PENNYCOOK · 2022 · Cited by 132 — We review research that shows how a simple nudge or prom...
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Source: tandfonline.com
Title: Are all News Created Equal?
Link: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/1461670X.2025.2487844Source snippet
How Event Types Change...by S Geiß · 2025 · Cited by 1 — This study explores how event types change the way news factors shape journalis...
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Source: tandfonline.com
Link: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/07421222.2025.2561381Source snippet
fake news headlines increases perceived accuracy of headlines without warnings.... attention to accuracy can reduce misinformation onlin...
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