The Sift: Scrolling for brain rot

An educator's guide
to news literacy

Sept. 14, 2026

In this issue

Scrolling for brain rot | RumorGuard slides

Daily Do Now slides

A week’s worth of do-nows, just for you.

Top picks

Here are the latest news literacy topics and tips on how to integrate them into your classroom.

Nonsensical content online contributes to “brain rot.”

1. Scrolling for gibberish to cope

Singing toilets. Dancing cappuccinos. Muscular fruit. What does this mean? Nothing — and that’s the point, researchers say.

• Brain rot online: Brain rot is a foggy feeling that occurs when scrolling an endless feed of absurd or low-quality social media videos. While some worry about the cognitive effect of brain rot, this column by the coauthor of a study contends that young people see brain rot content as a response to an information environment that constantly demands attention.
• Infinite feeds: Social media platforms compete for users’ attention — which amounts to a kind of race to the bottom with posts that are simpler and shorter winning out.
• Not an escape: Brain rot content may feel like a reprieve, but it is still a part of the information landscape, racking up views, comments and shares — and driving algorithmically served ads. 
• Algorithms off: Meanwhile, social media users in Australia may soon have more control of their feeds. Proposed legislation introduced last week would require tech companies to provide an option to opt out of algorithms.

💬 Discuss:

• How do algorithms influence what you see online?
• How do tech companies benefit from having social media users’ attention on their platforms? 
• How can you overcome the commercial incentives of algorithms to create a healthy media diet for yourself? What does that look like?

💡Idea: Use the “Brain Rot” slide in Week 3 of the Daily Do Now resource to further explore this issue.

⭐ NLP Resources:

• Interactive lesson: “Introduction to Algorithms”

🔗 Related:

• “How Facebook’s News Feed introduced the age of the algorithm 20 years ago” (The Conversation)

2. Journalism ethics code updated for AI

For the first time since 2014, the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) is updating its code of ethics.

• Artificial intelligence: In its proposed draft, the code has a new line that says technology does not excuse inaccuracy. “Journalists are ethically responsible for their work, regardless of tools and technologies used,” the revised line reads.
• Independent journalists: Other proposed changes include addressing news content creators and independent journalists by underscoring the importance of labeling sponsored content and being transparent about partnerships, for example.
• Key principles unchanged: SPJ’s four key principles will stay the same: Seek truth and report it, minimize harm, act independently, and be accountable and transparent.
• Voluntary guide: There is no authority that requires journalists and content creators to follow the code, although these values are taken seriously in standards-based newsrooms. SPJ will vote on the code next month for final approval.

💬 Discuss:

• Do you think it makes sense that SPJ’s four key principles remain the same, despite significant changes to the information environment?
• Should content creators and independent journalists follow the same standards and ethical guidelines as journalists working in a newsroom? 
• If a journalist uses AI in their work, who or what is ultimately responsible for the accuracy of the information? Why?

⭐ NLP Resources:

• Interactive lesson: “Practicing Quality Journalism”
• Poster: “Seven standards of quality journalism” 
• Infographic: “6 things to know about AI”

🔗 Related:

• Podcast: “Dave Jorgenson on Politics in the Influencer Age” (On the Media)

3. Hikers stranded after following chatbot advice

Three men recently consulted an AI chatbot to help plan their hike up Mount Shasta in Northern California. They ended up stranded.

• Relying on AI: The novice hikers used Google Gemini to plan their route and packing list. The chatbot recommended food and water for a planned eight-hour ascent, but the trek turned into a two-day ordeal.
• Hikers rescued: Experts recommend heading back from the summit at noon, but the trio didn’t reach the summit until 7 p.m. — leaving them to hike back in the dark. One of them fell and injured his knee. Rescuers reached them the next day. 
• Sheriff’s advice: “We relied too much on AI rather than our own critical thinking,” the group said following the rescue. The Siskiyou County sheriff’s office warned the public “to never rely solely on AI for your trip planning.”

💡 Idea: Have students plan a day trip using an AI chatbot. They can prompt it for an itinerary, a packing list, weather and directions. Then ask them to fact-check the plan using news literacy skills like lateral reading and critical thinking. Have students share their findings and discuss the following.

💬 Discuss:

• Could the hikers have verified information before their trip? What other sources of information could they have used?
• Chatbots are capable of being reliable about some topics, but what makes them dangerous to trust about important topics?

⭐ NLP Resource:

• Lesson plan: “AI or not?”

🔗 Related:

• “Kentucky Middle School Sends Students Home on First Day of Class With AI-Generated Educational Materials Full of Inexcusable Hallucinations, Including a Map Labeled With ‘North Dahota’ and ‘Olkchoma’” (Futurism)

These interactive slide decks help students think carefully and critically about viral claims in the digital age.

AI video depicts SpaceX rocket crashing into moon

❌ NO: This is not a genuine video of a SpaceX rocket piece crashing into the moon.

✅ YES: This video is AI-generated.

✅ YES: Part of a SpaceX rocket from Falcon 9 crashed into the moon on Aug. 5, leaving behind a 60-foot-wide crater.

❌ NO: The impact was not captured on video.

⭐ NewsLit takeaway:

AI-generated videos can appear quite convincing at first glance, especially when they are created and shared in the aftermath of a genuine news event. Check out these Google Slides for tips on spotting this deceptive content.

➕ Since the start of the Russia-Ukraine War in 2022, hundreds of Ukrainian news outlets have shuttered because of staffing shortages, attacks and declining revenue. Many local journalists who remain have taken on the role of war correspondents.

➕ Human or AI? A Press Gazette investigation into the identities of four finance “journalists” who appear to have published more than 1,000 articles — including many positive stories about cryptocurrencies — could not verify that the writers actually exist.

➕ Cat in the Hat says his tricks are not bad, but that may not be true on social media. Users are dressing up as the Dr. Seuss character or posting AI-generated content of him, and some of these posts contain threats of violence — leading to several teenagers getting arrested in the United States.

➕ Routine vaccination rates are continuing to decline for incoming kindergartners this school year, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data. Health officials say misinformation is a contributing factor.

➕ When there’s fewer local news reporters, there’s fewer eyes watching local government and keeping it accountable. More than 90 journalists and media workers working for newspapers owned by McClatchy were recently laid off — including a large portion of The Miami Herald.

➕ Teen magazines in print are a thing of the past … right? Maybe not. An editor of WYouth, a new teen magazine that hits the stands on Sept. 15, claims “kids are yearning for pre-internet times.”

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Thanks for reading!

Your weekly issue of The Sift is created by Susan Minichiello, Dan Evon, Peter Adams, Hannah Covington and Pamela Brunskill. It is edited by Lourdes Venard and Mary Kane.

You’ll find teachable moments from our previous issues in the archives. Send your suggestions and success stories to thesift@newslit.org.

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Check out NLP's Checkology virtual classroom, where students learn how to navigate today’s information landscape by developing news literacy skills.