Gresham's Law and News in a Post-Truth World. (June 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Kovacic, Branislav
• Is Part Of: Asia Pacific media educator. Volume 29:Number 1(2019:Jun.)
• Page Start: 54
• Page End: 57
• Publication Date: 2019-06
• Subjects: Erosion of democratic principles and practices -- Gresham's law -- news circuits -- strategic influence campaigns -- erosion of democratic principles and practices; Journalism -- Pacific Area -- Periodicals; Journalism -- Study and teaching -- Pacific Area -- Periodicals; Journalism -- Study and teaching -- Periodicals; Mass media -- Study and teaching -- Pacific Area -- Periodicals; Mass media -- Study and teaching -- Periodicals; Mass media -- Research -- Pacific Area -- Periodicals; 070.07105
• DOI: 10.1177/1326365X19838926
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1326-365X

Abstract

Economists and finance experts have studied how 'bad money drives out good' and formulated Gresham's law (Mokyr, 2003). The law states that the more expensive money tends to disappear from circulation because it is counterfeited, hoarded, or exported. One can propose a similar principle in the news business – real, verified, and socially relevant news tends to be replaced by fake, unverified, and often socially irrelevant news. This tends to happen not only in the American version of news production models (purportedly neutral and objective) but also in other more ideologically and politically oriented news production models.