Embedded Tick -Fake News
Introduction
In the Spring of 2017, a Facebook post circulated that showed a “New Rare Breed” of ticks to alert people. The picture shows a close up of a tick buried one-third of its body in the human skin, which is obviously meant to alarm the viewer. Along with the photographs, this post has a headline to scare viewers more by stating that the tick burrows in one’s skin without even feeling it. This Facebook post spread rapidly despite having minimal evidence attached with the photos that only included the location from two different locations. Mychael Gallagher published the photographs of the “New Tick Breed” with a caption that includes grammatical errors, but most importantly Gallagher said, “…Mess you up good,” followed by hashtags which should make it clear to the reader that this post is fake. According to Snopes, this Facebook post was an experiment Gallagher did with his daughter to show how easily fake news can spread. Overall, the Facebook post does not require a close analysis to draw the conclusion that this Facebook post is simply false.
Research Results
A Google search of “New Tick Breed” brought up numerous articles, specifically from fact checking sources, such as Snopes. All of these fact checking websites verified that this Facebook post was a clear case of fake news. According to the University of Rhode Island, ticks are incapable of embedding their full body into the skin and can only penetrate the skin with the hypostome. Upon looking for other similar fake news articles from 2017, I was not able to find any other tick rumors. Within the Snopes article, there is a photo taken by SportFishWorld.com that shows what a real tick bite will look like, which does not have a tick embedded into the skin. Additionally, other sources that were linked in the Snopes article included the following titles; “Grand Canyon Visitor Tests Positive for Fare Tick-Borne Relapsing Fever”, “Rare, Potentially-Deadly Tick-Borne Disease Powassan Found in New York, New Jersey”, and “Experts Issue Warning About Heavy Tick Season.” Although these articles are related to ticks, their titles use specific words with negative connotations to grab the reader’s attention.
The conclusion of this Facebook post being false is an easy accusation to make without researching. According to the research article by Richter Dania et al., it discusses the process of how ticks insert themselves into the skin of humans and animals. Throughout the article the authors thoroughly explain that the tick never fully submerges itself into the skin. To further illustrate Richter Dania, et al. wrote,”…they must attach firmly enough to their host’s skin to remain in place…” This quote completely supports the point that ticks do not fully embedded themselves into the skin, because in the quote it clearly states that if they do not attach well to the host they will fall off.
In conclusion, although Facebook can be useful for staying updated on people’s lives, it should not be used to find out reliable information. This Facebook post shows many signs of Fake News such as bad grammar, non-reliable sources, and misleading photographs. Therefore, articles should be researched fully in order to determine if the information is correct, and not rely on something that was seen on their Facebook page.
Works Cited
Palma, Bethania. “FACT CHECK: Is There a New, Rare Tick That Burrows Under Your Skin Undetected?” Snopes.com, 24 May 2017, www.snopes.com/fact-check/new-tick-burrows/.
Richter, Dania, et al. “How Ticks Get under Your Skin: Insertion Mechanics of the Feeding Apparatus of Ixodes Ricinus Ticks.” Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 22 Dec. 2013, royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rspb.2013.1758.
University of Rhode Island. “TickEncounter Resource Center.” TickEncounter Resource Center > F.A.Q. > Tick Bites, 2018, tickencounter.org/faq/tick_bites.
