By Makhosazana Zwane-Siguqa
As part of their ongoing efforts to combat information disorders (misinformation, disinformation and, mal information) News24, South Africa’s leading online news platform has launched a Disinformation debunking desk with the aim of debunking mistruths in the public discourse space and improve the quality of their journalism through vigorous fact checking and debunking information disorder. This leading-edge move is in light of the pervasiveness of information disorder pandemic which has engulfed the entire global discourse.
“We’re currently living in an era where anyone can publish anything in an instant and claim that it’s true. Often, those with the loudest voices or biggest reach are taken more seriously, regardless of whether the information they’re spreading is based on fact or suits their personal agenda. Legacy media, with all its checks and balances and despite its flaws, still has a vital role to play in assisting the general public to determine what is factual and what is not,” says the newly appointed disinformation desk head, Andrew Thompson.
The role of professional journalists, media houses and academia continue to serve as the cornerstone of journalistic integrity and factual information as these sectors continue to meticulously scrutinize and dismantle erroneous narratives through systematic analysis and fact checking while offering conclusions grounded in evidence. This alertness and rigor are crucial now more than ever.
On proliferation of disinformation sources, Professor George Claassen, the former head of department of journalism at Stellenbosch and Tshwane University of Technology (Pretoria Technicon) and now News24’s public editor and a board member of the Organization for News Ombuds and Standards Editors explained on News24’s opinion page why this desk is necessary.
“The dire need for News24 and our stable mate Netwerk24 to inform – and educate – their readers accurately and fairly about the facts in the public sphere is clearly reflected in many of the misinformed and blatantly inaccurate views expressed by some of our readers in their comments below many of our reports. The recent uninformed, misleading attack by the US President on South Africa and the chorus of readers supporting him despite the facts, emphasize how difficult but also important the future role of reliable journalism will be in the decades to come”, Claasen wrote.
This view is echoed by Thompson, “Disinformation and misinformation reach us through various mediums: large, respected news websites, social media, political speeches, and community leaders. Sometimes, they are shared without malice, but increasingly, people in positions of power spread blatant falsehoods without fear of any consequence”, he says.
This challenge is exacerbated by the incredibly fast paced era of 24hour news channels and always on online platforms
As an online news platform, with “Trusted news. First,” for a as a precept, News24 is aware of these practical, engine room challenges to excellent journalism.
“The news cycle moves incredibly fast at the moment, and what was headline news this morning likely won’t be by this evening. This, with the rapid rise of mis- and disinformation, means we have to be faster and more thorough than ever before”, adds Thompson.
Information Disorder on Land reform, the President signing the Appropriation Bill, BELA act, unemployment, farming and crime are just a few of the issues dominating public discourse.
Since its launch, the News24 disinformation debunking desk has debunked far reaching information disorder reports on South Africa, from Fresh disinfo and rehashed claims: Fact-checking AfriForum’s Trump-pandering YouTube ‘documentary’, across debunking TikTok viral videos with SA’s ‘fake’ Hulk Hogan: From viral TikTok cameos to an Indian newspaper mix-up , to publishing syndicated debunks about South African border control with Post falsely claims South Africa patrols border in Belgian armoured vehicle, News24 disinformation desk has been engrossed.
“Since we launched News24’s disinformation Desk, about land reform, farming, and crime in South Africa has proven incredibly prevalent and emotive. The diplomatic fallout with the United States has largely been based on disinformation proliferating online. As the news cycle evolves, I expect this to shift to slightly less volatile but equally important topics, like immigration and local politics”, says Thompson.
“It’s never been more important to show a commitment towards the truth. Casual misinformation – a forwarded WhatsApp, or a DM’d Reel – is a daily reality for many of us, and it has the ability to create localized panic and unease. But the rise of orchestrated, considered disinformation, often emanating from offices once considered bastions or at least offering semblances of truth, has the ability to change the world as we know it – to put corrupt leaders in power, enforce stereotypes, and prolong hardships for the benefit of the few”, he adds.
AI and the role of AI in information disorders cannot be underestimated.
According to the World Economic Forum’s Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution the wide-ranging incorporation of AI (Artificial Intelligence) in this digital era has led to multiple innovations and challenges, specifically regarding the accuracy of information. Artificial Intelligence systems have the ability to generate ‘deepfakes’, amplification of “fake news”, bias and misrepresentation and thus adding to the creation of misinformation, disinformation and mal information.
However artificial intelligence can also be used to combat false information by analyzing patterns, language, and context, thereby aiding content moderation initiatives.
“AI is becoming an increasingly useful tool in the debunking process. We routinely use it to analyze images for manipulation, assist with geolocation, and quickly run tasks like extracting keyframes from videos and comparing them to others currently online. We’re only at the very beginning of harnessing AI’s powers to debunk disinformation, just as we’re only now starting to feel its ability to create it. Fact-checking is central to all good journalism, and every writer in the News24 newsroom is well-versed in this. No journalism will retain respect without rigorous fact-checking — and a willingness to admit when mistakes are made, says Thompson
Operational Challenges
With the well documented shrinkage of legacy media newsrooms, the project is certainly not without its constraints. Thompson asserts that although operational resources are a challenge because of the limited size of the team, everyone is onboard towards debunking myths and false narratives, deliberately or non- deliberate information disorder through correcting mistruths, misrepresentations, false data, and omissions in the public sphere.
“We are not a strictly fact-finding desk, although fact-finding is intrinsic to all good journalism. This is a disinformation desk that corrects items with an agenda or mistruths that are put into the public domain as fact.
We are a small team, but we will work as hard as we can to investigate and, if necessary, debunk stories from across the spectrum. Some matters require urgent attention, which we will prioritize; others speak to longer, slower-burning concerns that we will deal with as and when we can. It will, unfortunately, never be possible to debunk all disinformation, but hopefully, by picking important examples, we can assist readers in discerning fact from fiction both in the specific case and in future ones like it. All the major debunking stories will exist as news items on the daily diary and will be clearly labelled as such.”, Thompson concludes.
Here is the link to the News24 disinformation debunking stories and archive – https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/debunking
