[kictanet] Day 2 on Fake News: Platform Responsibility

Thu Aug 17 21:55:54 EAT 2017

There is a risk that the moderators and the programmers who write the
algorithms may bring their ingrained biases to the process of managing fake
news.

On Thu, Aug 17, 2017 at 9:51 PM, anyega jefferson <jeffersonanyega at gmail.com
> wrote:

>
> This article sheds light on the dangers and opportunities in relying on
> algorithms and moderators to tackle fake news/hate speech and such matters.
>
> https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurencoleman/2017/08/17/why-
> the-sensitive-intersection-of-race-hate-speech-and-
> algorithms-is-heating-up/?utm_source=TWITTER&utm_medium=
> social&utm_content=1033999973&utm_campaign=sprinklrForbesMainTwitter#
> 5223f3db1350
>
> On Thu, Aug 17, 2017 at 5:17 PM, kanini mutemi via kictanet <
> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>
>> One of the proposals made yesterday was that platforms should pull down
>> Fake News posts. Is this a desirable approach?
>>
>> On Thu, Aug 17, 2017 at 5:01 PM, Eric Mugendi via kictanet <
>> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>>
>>> Here's my two cents on this from a fact checker's perspective:
>>>
>>>
>>> *(a) What is the effect of Fake News to the mainstream media?*Fake news
>>> tends to distract audiences and divert their attention away from the truth.
>>> It often mimics real news and taps into our biases and prejudices. If you
>>> see a fake story that says something you have long suspected to be true,
>>> even if the evidence appears dodgy, you are more willing to share it than
>>> another story that says the opposite of what you believe. As a resuly
>>>
>>> *(b) **What is the role of the Kenyan media in combating Fake News?*
>>> Kenyan media has the double role of debunking fake stories and
>>> propagating the truth. It is not enough to just point at a story and say
>>> that it is false, the burden is then on the media to point out the truth.
>>> They can do this by actively fact-checking the stories that are in the
>>> public domain, rather than just the stories they publish. Given the amount
>>> of trust that Kenyans have in mainstream media, one critical service that
>>> the media can do is to check what they write to make sure it is legitimate.
>>> They can also give members of the public an avenue to quickly check whether
>>> the stories they see on social media or receive via messaging apps are true
>>> before they share.
>>>
>>> *(c) **Is the Kenyan media doing enough?*
>>> I don't think so. A lot of times the fake stories that do get around
>>> tend to colour the narrative, so to speak, so in the end, you have a
>>> distracted media unwilling to invest resources into holding the things
>>> politicians and other public figures say, or what is published on social
>>> media for instance. Fact-checking is a continuous process, and it is
>>> essential in order to ensure that everyone is held accountable for what
>>> they say. So far, the media
>>>
>>> *(d) **What should platforms such as Facebook and Google be doing to
>>> reduce the effect of Fake News? Is there a need for localised solutions?*
>>> Facebook and Google are inherently neutral in this, in my opinion. This
>>> does not absolve them from the fact that their platforms are used to
>>> distribute fake news and other questionable stories. They have initiated
>>> methods to check verification, with Google adding a 'This story has been
>>> verified' tag on search results, and Facebook adding a banner on their site
>>> with information on how to verify if a story is legit, but these
>>> initiatives have a limited reach, given the fact that much of our news
>>> content falls outside their radar.
>>> As a result, we definitely need localized solutions. There are some like
>>> Nation's Newsplex that have taken on the task, along with the fact-checking
>>> segment on the Sunday news on NTV. However, seeing as these initiatives are
>>> part of the media establishment, they are unlikely to be critical of their
>>> own coverage. Truly independent initiatives such as PesaCheck
>>> <http://pesacheck.org> which I work on, and AfricaCheck, are able to
>>> navigate the space in a truly neutral way, and we are gaining some
>>> attention from the public. There is a need for more local initiatives
>>> because there are significant gaps in coverage, meaning that we can only do
>>> so much with the claims that we check.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Eric Mugendi
>>> about.me/mugendi
>>> [image: Eric Mugendi on about.me]
>>>   <http://about.me/mugendi>
>>>
>>> On 17 August 2017 at 16:22, anyega jefferson via kictanet <
>>> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>>>
>>>> I believe platforms must be held accountable. If a legal entity trades
>>>> in information, then it should have a responsibility to protect its
>>>> consumers.
>>>> However, this may require a rethink of their role as non-publishers.
>>>> If, Mark Zuckerberg runs for POTUS, as it remotely seems, he will have
>>>> to contend with accusations of punishing alternative views and infringing
>>>> on free speech.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On Aug 17, 2017 14:11, "kanini mutemi via kictanet" <
>>>> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Good morning Listers.
>>>>>
>>>>> It's another great day to talk about Fake News! Day 1 we focused on
>>>>> the prevalence of Fake News and the role of different stakeholders in
>>>>> combating it. Now we move to *Platform Responsibility. *
>>>>>
>>>>> For those who are just joining us, KICTANet is carrying out a three
>>>>> day online engagement with the National Cohesion and Integration Commission
>>>>> (NCIC) on how to deal with Fake News. Feel free to share your proposals on
>>>>> possible interventions.
>>>>>
>>>>> Here are some questions to guide our discussion today:
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> *(a) What is the effect of Fake News to the mainstream media?*
>>>>>
>>>>> *(b) **What is the role of the Kenyan media in combating Fake News?*
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> *(c) *
>>>>> *Is the Kenyan media doing enough?*
>>>>>
>>>>> *(d) **What should platforms such as Facebook and Google be doing to
>>>>> reduce the effect of Fake News? Is there a need for localised solutions?*
>>>>>
>>>>> Fire away.
>>>>> --
>>>>> *Mercy Mutemi*.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
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>>>>>
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>>>>>
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>>>>
>>>> The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform
>>>> for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and
>>>> regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT
>>>> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development.
>>>>
>>>> KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors
>>>> online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth,
>>>> share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do
>>>> not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
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>>> ailman/options/kictanet/kaninimutemi%40gmail.com
>>>
>>> The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform
>>> for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and
>>> regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT
>>> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development.
>>>
>>> KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors
>>> online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth,
>>> share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do
>>> not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> *Mercy Mutemi, Advocate*.
>>
>>
>>
>>
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>>
>> Unsubscribe or change your options at https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/m
>> ailman/options/kictanet/jeffersonanyega%40gmail.com
>>
>> The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform
>> for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and
>> regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT
>> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development.
>>
>> KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors
>> online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth,
>> share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do
>> not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.
>>
>>
>
>
> --
> Anyega M Jefferson
>
> jeffersonanyega at gmail.com
>
> 0703824326
>
> Start where you are,use what you have and do what you can.
>
>

-- 
Anyega M Jefferson

jeffersonanyega at gmail.com

0703824326

Start where you are,use what you have and do what you can.
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