[agallant]

As another example "fake news" isn't new either, e.g. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_journalism

However, I'd suggest that the new challenge isn't simply scale and omnipresence but algorithmization - modern platforms can tune and target to the level of the individual. In the past, (dis)information had to be broadcast in a far more one-size-fits-most style, perhaps segmented by broad geographic or demographic groups at best.