Some 25 African news agency journalists are undergoing a five-day training seminar to enhance their skills in combating the spread of misinformation and countering fake news.
The training seminar, organised by the Atlantic Federation of African Press Agencies (FAAPA) at the African Centre for Training of Journalists (CAFJ) in Rabat, Morocco, is on the theme: “Fact-Checking: Detection of fake news in media content”.
In an era of digital information, the need for fact-checking has become more crucial than ever as journalists play vital roles in maintaining public trust by ensuring credibility, accuracy, and reliability in their reporting.
The training seminar is, therefore, a step towards equipping journalists with the necessary tools to identify and counter fake news and ultimately safeguarding democracy across the continent.
In partnership with the Bank of Africa and Royal Air Moroc, the seminar will strengthen the capacities of journalists in fact-checking by acquiring theoretical knowledge and practical skills necessary to master the techniques for verifying the reliability of the information to counter fake news and mis/disinformation.
The seminar will result in the creation of a framework for journalists, allowing them to set up a platform specialised in verifying information and multimedia content as well as the development of a guide on fact-checking with a view to putting it into practice.
Mr Fouad ARIF, the President of FAAPA, in his welcoming address, emphasised the relevance of the seminar theme as it reflected the importance FAAPA on strengthening skills and exchanging experiences between journalists from African news agencies on fake news.
He said the training seminar had become necessary to combact misinformation, disinformation, and fake news by strengthening journalists’ resilience in nipping the phenomenon in the bud.
Pofessional journalists and expert trainers, he noted, were expected to supervise various workshops by providing participants with advice in their fact-checking efforts.
Mr Arif, also the Director General of Moroccan News Agency (MAP), said at a time characterised by the impact of social networks and the proliferation of fake news, African press agencies were expected, as part of a new dynamic, to recommend innovative approaches in order to support the frantic evolution of information systems and adapt to the profound changes taking place in the world of media.
In that context, he urged participants of the training to attach importance to the exchange of experiences and the sharing of knowledge while cultivating credible sources of information to deal with fake news.
Mr Arif said the phenomenon of fakenews was “a real scourge for the media sector…which was taking on increasingly worrying dimensions”, adding that journalists from African news agencies must be vigilant in the process of collecting, processing, and disseminating information through the application of effective fact-checking techniques.
The President of FAAPA expressed optimism that the seminar will “result in the creation of a network of Fact-Checkers with the aim of promoting the intensification of exchanges of information and experience in this area and strengthen coordination to combat fake news and demystify disinformation.”
Mr Jean Bedel Ndandula, a facilitator from the Congolese Press Agency, said information and data were key in news reporting and that journalists must at all times verify such information.
He said verifying information from the original source was essential as a first step in fact-checking.
