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HOW CAN WE TACKLE DISINFORMATION? GLOBAL EFFORTS ARE ON THE RISE

Hi John,

Across the globe, disinformation is growing, produced and disseminated by
individuals, groups, and companies typically serving financial or political
agendas that seek to oppress. It’s in the media we consume, in
advertising and in politics, particularly ahead of election seasons.

From the role AI could play in creating propaganda [4] to Big Tech’s
failure [5] to tackle Russia’s disinformation about the war in Ukraine,
our ability to detect truth from lies grows harder by the day. A 2019 study
from the University of Baltimore [6] suggests that disinformation could
cost the global economy close to USD 80 billion a year!

SO HOW CAN WE PROTECT OURSELVES? 

Media and information literacy (MIL) is a fundamental part of the solution.
MIL equips people with the knowledge and skills to understand how
information is produced and distributed. It also informs people about what
laws are needed to support a free and independent media.

ARTICLE 19 is calling for states to include media and information literacy
[3] in educational programmes and in life-long learning initiatives,
equipping people with the knowledge and skills to understand how
information is produced and distributed, and helping us all to distinguish
facts from lies, recognise rumours from propaganda, and to participate in
the public exchange of news and ideas.

WHAT CAN MIL CURRICULUMS DO? 

a) Explain the key principles of international freedom of expression and
media freedom standards.

b)Teach people the skills to identify and combat harmful content, such as
hate speech, disinformation, and censorship.

c) Raise awareness of the challenges faced by marginalised communities and
ensure that their voices and concerns are fairly represented.

ARTICLE 19 believes that media and information literacy is a key response
to disinformation, hate speech, unfair content moderation, and poor
transparency – some of the biggest information challenges of our time.

HOW ELSE CAN WE TACKLE DISINFORMATION?  

Disinformation is now a regular feature of elections: from the USA to
Brazil, Kenya and Turkey, propaganda aims to manipulate the voting public
and sow fear, undermining the democratic process and the integrity of
elections.

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#SHAREINFORMATION #SHAREDEMOCRACY

We can learn valuable lessons from initiatives around the world. In the run
up to Brazil’s’ presidential election last year, ARTICLE 19’s Brazil
and South America office launched the #ShareInformation#ShareDemocracy [7]
campaign to educate and inform the voting public, urging young people to
register and vote, and involving them in the campaign. The initiative
brought together 20 organisations and groups from diverse backgrounds and
cultures to work on issues affecting young people, black women, women with
disabilities, indigenous people, communicators, and people from both rural
and urban areas across Brazil.

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TIKTOK4PEACE

ARTICLE 19 Eastern Africa worked with TikTok on #TikTok4Peace in Kenya [9],
to help young people identify online disinformation during the elections.
Over 3 live-streamed events [8] which were viewed by 23,000 people, and
featured in TikTok’s general election guide [10], speakers discussed
disinformation and responsible election choices. It was so successful that
TikTok is now developing ARTICLE 19’s project as one of its flagship
programmes and has committed to implementing it globally.

‘THE TIKTOK FOR PEACE LIVE STREAMS BROADENED MY UNDERSTANDING OF HOW
POLITICAL DISCOURSE SHOULD BE DONE … AS A YOUNG PERSON WHO IS ACTIVE ON
SOCIAL MEDIA, THE CONVERSATIONS HELPED SHED LIGHT ON THE STEPS I SHOULD
TAKE TO DETECT AND AVOID PERPETUATING MISINFORMATION AND DISINFORMATION
ONLINE.’ 

– TikTok4Peace live-stream attendee

STAY TUNED 

In addition to the solutions outlined above, we know, too, how vital
increased transparency is to tackling disinformation. The upcoming 2023
Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Summit [11], taking place on 18-19
September in New York, will be a key forum to push to strengthen global
transparency and ensure quality information for all.

Look out for ARTICLE 19’s emails and daily output, including on social
media, about the summit and on the RIGHT TO KNOW DAY, 28 SEPTEMBER. 

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