Breaking the News: Taking the Roles of Influencer vs. Journalist in a LLM-Based Game

Breaking the News functions as a competitive, player-versus-player educational intervention designed to enhance media literacy through the simulation of misinformation dynamics. By tasking participants with adopting the roles of either an Influencer spreading misinformation or a Journalist debunking it, the game leverages GPT-4o to simulate dynamic public opinion and audience trust. This interactive framework moves beyond traditional, static choice-based games, providing an immersive environment where players must navigate the complexities of persuasion, emotional manipulation, and source verification during a fictional health crisis.

The study, which involved 47 participants, demonstrates that this competitive format significantly improves critical consumption skills and the ability to discern between factual and fabricated information. Players shifted from heuristic, authority-based trust toward more analytical, intent-focused evaluation, gaining a deeper understanding of the mechanics behind misinformation production. While the intervention successfully fostered critical thinking, it did not significantly improve media production skills or self-efficacy, highlighting the inherent difficulty of countering misinformation and the psychological exhaustion often associated with debunking efforts.

The system architecture relies on real-time multiplayer synchronization and LLM-driven personas to provide personalized feedback, though the research acknowledges notable technical and pedagogical limitations. The reliance on LLMs introduces risks such as hallucinations, logical inconsistencies, and potential biases that can impact learning outcomes. Furthermore, the effectiveness of the game is influenced by cultural context and demographic diversity. Future development necessitates rigorous prompt engineering and structured debriefing protocols to mitigate these risks. Ultimately, the findings suggest that while gamified, AI-driven role-playing is a potent tool for inoculation against misinformation, it must be balanced with human oversight to ensure that the educational experience remains accurate and effective in real-world social contexts.