How Digital Culture, Digital Identity, and Ideological Orientations Shape Anti-Hoax Discourses among Gen Z

Abstract

The rapid expansion of digital platforms has transformed social media into a contested arena where hoax, misinformation/disinformation, and post-truth narratives circulate intensively. Although Generation Z (Gen Z) is frequently portrayed as the demographic most vulnerable to hoaxes due to its dependence on social media and short-form content, such assumptions often overlook their capacity for critical agency. This study aims to explore how digital culture, digital identity, and ideological orientations shape anti-hoax discourses among Gen Z in Indonesia. Employing a qualitative approach with audience ethnography, this research involved observations, unstructured interviews, focus group discussions, and expert interviews. An initial survey identified more than 250 eligible informants aged 18–22 years, from which 8 informants were selected, with 5 informants ultimately serving as key informants based on the richness and consistency of their narratives. The findings reveal that Gen Z's digital culture is characterised by media social mindedness, scrolling, news snacking, lazy reading, multitasking, multiscreen practices, short attention spans, virality, and fear of missing out (FOMO). Despite these vulnerabilities, Gen Z demonstrates complex ideological orientations, including criticality, scepticism, selective apathy, digital pragmatism, and digital idealism. Furthermore, four dominant digital identities emerged: critical information consumers, independent verifiers, digital change agents, and adaptive users. The study argues that anti-hoax practices are not merely technical manifestations of digital literacy but represent discursive practices produced through the dynamic interplay of technological structures, social experiences, and ideological values. These findings offer a new conceptual framework that positions Gen Z not as passive victims of misinformation but as active co-creators of counter-hegemonic anti-hoax discourses, with implications for developing participatory and culturally responsive digital literacy strategies.