Factchecking Presentation PDF

MCM 111 NEWS LITERACY TOPIC: FACTCHECKING COURSE LECTURER : ADEOLA ABDULATEEF ELEGA, PHD.  ANALOGY/ASSERTIONS/QUOTATIONS The backbone of journalism rests on the principles of integrity and credibility. But how do these lofty ideals hold up in the modern era, where fake news can spread fas...

MCM 111 NEWS LITERACY TOPIC: FACTCHECKING COURSE LECTURER : ADEOLA ABDULATEEF ELEGA, PHD.  ANALOGY/ASSERTIONS/QUOTATIONS The backbone of journalism rests on the principles of integrity and credibility. But how do these lofty ideals hold up in the modern era, where fake news can spread faster than verified information? = factchecking, among others The Oxford Dictionary defines fact-checking as the process of investigating issues to verify facts.  UNDERSTANDING FACT-CHECKING What does it really mean to fact-check, and why has this practice become so pivotal in our daily consumption of information? The Oxford Dictionary simplifies the definition of fact-checking as a process that seeks to "investigate (an issue) in order to verify the facts". This foundational approach is more than a mere step in content creation—it's a critical, investigative inquiry deeply rooted in the history of information dissemination and shaped by social, political, and cultural contexts. In essence, fact-checking is the safeguard against misinformation, ensuring that content is not just compelling but also accurate and trustworthy. WHAT IS FACT-CHECKING Fact-checking is a set of practices and tools that allow you to verify information. It is the process of investigating an issue to verify the facts. A fact is something known to be true and can be proved. Any type of content can be fact-checked: photos, videos, rumours shared on social networks. However, it is crucial to state that it is becoming increasingly difficult (See slide 17)  FACT-CHECKING DEFINITION AND ITS ROLE IN VERIFYING THE ACCURACY OF CONTENT At its core, fact-checking serves as a quality control measure, vetting the accuracy of statements and claims before they reach the public eye. It isn't merely about checking off boxes but involves a meticulous analysis of the evidence behind claims and the credibility of sources. The goal is clear: to present https:// content that stands up to scrutiny, www.saudigazette.com.sa/ holds ethical integrity, and avoids article/647571/World/Asia/Top- legal pitfalls by being truthful and Indian-fact-checker-in-court-for- post-calling-out-hate-speech reliable. IMPORTANCE OF VERIFYING NEWS AND NEWS SOURCES FOR CREDIBILITY AND RELIABILITY With the advent of social media and the internet, the barriers to publishing information have dramatically lowered, leading to an information overload where the lines between fact and fiction can blur. The need to verify news and its sources is more crucial than ever. Journalists traditionally served as gatekeepers of truth, but now everyone has a part to play in fact-checking AI content. The network effect of social media has amplified the reach of both accurate and inaccurate information, making the user's ability to verify sources a key skill in navigating the digital world.  INTRODUCTION TO FACT-CHECKING TOOLS AND METHODS If you want to check if something is true, there are lots of digital tools that can help you. Search engines like Google provide a broad platform for initial inquiries, while databases such as LexisNexis offer a more scholarly approach with access to archived news and legal documents. Google's own Fact Check Tools, part of the Google News Initiative, equip users with the means to search for stories and images that have been debunked, ensuring that journalists and researchers can quickly identify false or misleading claims.  There are several authoritative fact-checking websites that can serve as excellent resources when validating information. Some of them are sites like FactCheck.org and Snopes.com, which specialize in debunking myths and verifying rumors. Political statements and campaign claims can be checked on PolitiFact, which uses a Truth-O-Meter to rate accuracy.  FACTCHECK.ORG https://www.factcheck.org/2024/11/post-misleadingly-questions-unfinished-ballot-counting-in-some-s SNOPES.COM AND POLITIFACT DYNAMICS OF FACT-CHECKING Fact-checking in the newsroom It refers to internal fact-checking during newsgathering and sub-editing before an article is published or broadcast. Fact-checking as a practice The focus is on verifying information that is already in the public domain. This usually focuses on verifying the accuracy of claims made by public figures, organisations and media platforms. WHAT CAN YOU FACT-CHECK? Multimedia: (Audio, text, pictures and videos) represented as historical data, statistics, comparisons and/or legalities  TIPS TO SPOT FAKE NEWS Social media is now a key way of sharing information, so it is crucial to be cautious when engaging with content online. The following tips can help you spot fake news: If something sounds too good, shocking, or strange to be true, it probably is. If information makes you scared, angry, or satisfied and triggers your emotions, verify its accuracy before sharing it. Seeing grammatical or spelling errors? Be very suspicious. If you hear rumours that something is happening, for example, violent protests, etc, do a Google News search to verify it. If it is a big story, a reputable news organisation would have covered it. Look closely at website addresses and URLs or social media handles, some look familiar to deceive the audience. Check links within the story - does the story link back to the actual content or source it refers to. If you suspect you are receiving false information, have a look at other stories, photos and videos on the website and ask yourself if they look credible. Look at the “About Us” page for a disclaimer to ensure you are not looking at a satirical site. VERIFYING IMAGES AND VIDEOS They say: “A picture is worth a thousand words” but it can also tell a thousand lies as it is prone to misinterpretation. Due to technological advancement, particularly image and video editing software and apps (Photoshop, Inshot, Illustrator, Filmora etc), it has become easier to use images and videos to mislead people. WHAT IS REVERSE IMAGE VERIFICATION? Reverse image search is a relatively new search method that allows people to upload a picture and browse similar photos online. Search engines use image recognition technology to bring up related images. This is searching for an image and details about it online. Uses of image verification Locate the source of an image. Find higher-resolution versions. Discover webpages where the image appears. Find the content creator. Get information about an image.  OTHER VERIFICATION TOOLS InVid verification plug in – This is a browser extension that helps in the verification of images and videos. Claim Buster is an innovative fact-check feature that helps people quickly and easily evaluate the credibility of online news stories. CrowdTangle is a social media analytics tool that allows you to monitor and analyse content performance across various social media platforms. (discontinued Aug. 2024)  SORA IS HERE! https://sora.com https://theperfectresponse.pages.tcnj.edu/2024/03/04/sora-will-be-a-disruptive- innovation/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OY2x0TyKzIQ