WHAT MAKES A NEWS STORY FAKE?

• It can't be verified.​ A fake news article may or may not have links in it tracing its sources. If the article does have links, they may not lead to articles outside of the site's domain or may not contain information pertinent to the article topic.
• Fake news appeals to emotion. Fake news plays on the reader's feelings - it makes the reader angry or happy or scared. By appealing to emotions, the authors are hoping to prevent the reader from fact-checking.
• Authors usually aren't experts. Authors are unidentifiable or lack credentials, and paid to invoke an action and direct traffic to the story, usually through sensational or off-topic claims, or use of inflammatory language.
• It can't be found anywhere else. 
• Fake news comes from fake sites. Did your article come from abcnews,com.co? or mercola.com? Realnewsrightnow.com? These and a host of other URLs are fake news sites.

Adapted from San José State University Library Fake News Research Guide.

There are four broad categories of fake news, according to media professor Melissa Zimdars of Merrimack College.

CATEGORY 1: Fake, false, or regularly misleading websites that are shared on Facebook and social media. Some of these websites may rely on “outrage” by using distorted headlines and decontextualized or dubious information in order to generate likes, shares, and profits.

CATEGORY 2: Websites that may circulate misleading and/or potentially unreliable information.

CATEGORY 3: Websites which sometimes use clickbait-y headlines and social media descriptions.

CATEGORY 4: Satire/comedy sites, which can offer important critical commentary on politics and society, but have the potential to be shared as actual/literal news.