“Fake news” is a term that has come to mean different things to different people. At its core, those news stories that are false: the story itself is fabricated, with no verifiable facts, sources or quotes. Sometimes these stories may be propaganda that is intentionally designed to mislead the reader, or may be designed as “clickbait” written for economic incentives (the writer profits on the number of people who click on the story). In recent years, fake news stories have proliferated via social media, in part because they are so easily and quickly shared online.

The universe of “fake news” is much larger than simply false news stories. They may not include any verifiable facts or sources. Some stories may include basic verifiable facts, but are written using language that is deliberately inflammatory, leaves out pertinent details or only presents one viewpoint. False information is deliberately created and spread "in order to influence public opinion or obscure the truth.

More Info: guides.lib.umich.edu