[kictanet] Day 2 on Fake News: Platform Responsibility

Fri Aug 18 06:44:21 EAT 2017

Dear colleagues,

Yes journalists have a role but also editors and media houses.  Regards.  Jaco

[cid:image001.png at 01D317ED.6A25DA70]

Jaco du Toit
Adviser for Communication & Information
UNESCO Regional Office for Eastern Africa

United Nations
Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization

United Nations Avenue, UNON, Gigiri (Room 209)
P.O. Box 30592-00100, Nairobi, Kenya
Tel.: +254 (0)20 762 2346/2566
Mobile: +254 (0) 728 610 912
http://www.unesco.org/new/en/nairobi

From: kictanet [mailto:kictanet-bounces+j.dutoit=unesco.org at lists.kictanet.or.ke] On Behalf Of Churchill Otieno via kictanet
Sent: Thursday, August 17, 2017 9:58 PM
To: Du Toit, Jaco <j.dutoit at unesco.org>
Cc: Churchill Otieno <cotieno at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [kictanet] Day 2 on Fake News: Platform Responsibility

What can journalists/media do? It might be helpful to note that the International Centre for Journalists (ICJF) is leading a global search to find clever things newsrooms around the world are doing, that may give truth the energy needed to compete or outpace fake news. What's emerging is that fake news feeds off emotions that it's recipients have already invested in, hence it has an almost opiumish pull. I'm part of this endeavor and we are also seeing quite some committed journalists, some in solo efforts, going hard to defend truth. Though it's still early days, expect some announcements in the coming weeks

On 17 Aug 2017, at 17:17, kanini mutemi via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke<mailto: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<mailto: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

On 17 August 2017 at 16:22, anyega jefferson via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke<mailto: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<mailto: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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