Kelly Garrett, associate professor, was recently published in the San Francisco Chronicle discussing what drives people to partisan sources and fake news. Garrett said the unwillingness to examine one's own beliefs is a primary reason individuals seek out partisan sources and fake news. 

Before the internet, most media organizations largely reported the same information and opinions were kept separate. Today, information is muddled with partisan websites and television channels mixing news, rumor and innuendo.

"When you have an outlet that primarily is the ideological drumbeat -- 'Look at all these terrible things that people on the other side have done' -- it mobilizes people while also undermining all of the institutions around which we have historically found common ground," Garrett said.