Mobile Myanmar: The Impact of Social Media on Young People Living in Conflict-Affected Regions of Myanmar Several reasons were provided as to why young people might be believe fake news to be true: if posted by someone they trusted; if they were only new to Facebook and thus lacked experience; because young people may use their feelings to decipher beliefs in the news rather than looking at facts; or if they had a low education level. “People who have little education can be easily persuaded…this can incite conflict. But those who have higher education can determine what’s right and wrong.” Male, 28 years, Chin Christian, Sittwe (Rakhine State urban) The verbal spread of online fake news was also mentioned, with the repeating of incorrect information to other people who are not online potentially causing wider spread of negative impacts. When participants hear news about what is happening in their community/country, they said it makes them feel sadness and anger. However, when it is fake news, some participants suggested that they don't feel anything about the news, they instead feel anger towards the people who share and spread the fake news, questioning why they would do this. Muslim IDP participants were concerned about how fake news (or the omission/distortion of news) could guide how people in Myanmar feel and act towards them. “Fake news can alter the information and belief in people minds, like if people see smiles and happy faces from our IDP camps, other people who do not know will think that ‘Oh they are on vacation but not displaced and in trouble’. They just do not know the main information, what is happening.” F (teacher), 22 years, Rohingya Muslim, Thet Kel Pyin, (Rakhine State IDP) When asked what they do when confronted with fake news, most urban participants said they would ignore or skip the post. Some reported taking action so they don't see it anymore (such as hiding the post or unfollowing the account) or mocking the post by commenting with the 'haha' emoji. Muslim IDP participants were more likely to take stronger actions to address fake news, such as making a comment on the post to either tell others it is fake news or asking the user not to post such fake news. Some participants from both locations reported to have taken part in sharing fake news. A Muslim IDP participant noted that they shared fake news thinking it was real until a teacher corrected his understanding of the information that was presented, whereas urban participants revealed more active sharing of fake news, but only between friends for fun (i.e., not shared publicly). There was a consensus from participants from both the Muslim IDP and urban locations that the proliferation of fake news had diminished their trust in what they see on social media. Participants from the Muslim IDP camps noted that there is likely to be more fake than real news on Facebook, because anyone can post anything they like. One IDP participant said that as they relied on Facebook to get information from outside of their camp, they had to be selective about the news agencies they follow. An urban participant noted that they do not read political news because the majority of stories are fake news. Another urban participant said that they trusted Facebook when they were a new user, but with more experience they can now use their judgement to critically analyse the content and whether to believe the news or not. It was agreed that trust in online news was largely dependent on the news organisation or the reporter of the news and that with more fake news around, there is now a blur between what is real and what is fake and thus more uncertainty. “Because of fake news, it makes people not to trust real news. When things really happen, people won’t believe in that.” Female, 21 years, Maramagyi Buddhist, Sittwe (Rakhine State urban) When asked if there were individuals or influencers online that they trust more than online versions of traditional news sources, Muslim IDP participants said that they trusted social media posts by Rohingya activists such as Ro Nay 51