Fake news: Catalyst for national disunity
By Maria Famakinwa
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As a result of the modern technological advancements, journalism and information gathering, sharing and consumption patterns have changed and one of these changes is the veracity and intensity of sources and sharing of fake news.
Fake news is an untrue, fabricated and an outright falsehood concocted by individual or a group to deceive the public, cause ill feelings, influence people’s views, push a political agenda or cause disaffection or confusion for specific government policy, disparage or malign a perceived enemy. The effect of fake news cannot be overemphasized, it can influence public reputation and heat up the polity. Stakeholders in the media profession and concerned citizens of the country are calling for concerted efforts to tackle the growing incident of fake news for Nigerians to enjoy good governance.
Just last year, the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed warned that the increase in the propagation of fake news is dangerous and if allowed to continue unchecked can cause problems in the country. “Fake news whether at the local national and international levels have potentials to threaten the peace, security and the corporate existence of the country. The biggest prank that can consume the world today is fake news and if not curtailed, its consequences might be worst than the crisis the world had witnessed.”
The Media Adviser to Osun State Governor on speech writing, Mr Sola Imoru also urged stakeholders in the media profession to take a drastic step against fake news so as not to render more havoc that can set the country on fire. He gave this advice during a two-day workshop on the topic; Fake news: Catalyst for national disunity, organized by the Nigeria Press Council with support of LAMFORTE Resources Limited in Ibadan, Oyo State.
Imoru who spoke on Fake News Versus Editorial Integrity defined fake news as information deliberately fabricated and published with the intention to deceive and mislead others into believing falsehoods or doubting verifiable facts. “Fake News is a menance threatening the peace, unity and integration of the world as well as personal relationships, business, organisation among others. The conventional online and social media constitute the channels for sharing this virus. As the fourth estate of the realm charged by section 22 of the 1999 constitution (as amended) should rise to address it. “
Imoru further revealed that fake news is concocted by an individual or a group to deceive the public, cause ill feelings, influence people’s views, push a political agenda or cause disaffection or confusion for specific government policy, disparage or malign to suit selfish interest. “Fake news constitute an anathema to good governance and the practice of journalism. It creates confusion in the media and public space. Indeed, it is poison to journalism practice, good neigbourliness and governance. Hence, the urgent need to tackle it.”
Sharing similar sentiment, the second resource person from University of Ibadan, Department of Communication and Language Arts, Dr Babatunde Ojebuyi who spoke on Combating Fake News Via Ethical and Investigative Journalism opined that due to modern technology advancement, journalism and information generation, sharing and consumption patterns have changed.
“One of these changes is the veracity and intensity of creation and sharing of fake news. Though, fake news is not a new phenomenon, but it has taken a new dimension with the emergence of the internet – enabled platforms (the social media) which has made the “news gate” become exceedingly porus as anybody with access to the social media platform is now a journalist.”
Dr Ojebuyi who disclosed that one major psychological catalyst that traditional fake news writers exploit is individual vulnerability added that fake news make people to be sceptical of credible news pointed out how to detect fake news to include checking of the dateline, remembering how often you come across the story, check the history of the online or offline source of the news, checking common linguistic features across the source including sentiment, complexity, structures, check the URLS(Protocols,Domain, Directory, File Names) among others.
Dr Ojebuyi said that investigative journalism is a form of journalism where the reporter goes in-depth to investigate a single story. “When other reporters go for what has been said, an investigative journalist look for what has not been said. Aim of investigative journalism is to serve the people and it may take months or years to conclude a single story or issue.
“Investigative journalist must not rely on materials supplied by the government, Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and others but depends primarily on materials gathered through their own initiative and research.” To combat fake news ethics according to him, one must avoid instantenous reporting, avoid relying on few sources, establish good relationship with your sources, do not tell lies, beware of bias and distortion, be independent, always consider consequences of your story among others.
Another resource person also from University of Ibadan, Department of Communication and Language Arts, Dr Bisi Olawuyi who spoke on Impact of Fake News on 2019 General Elections said that the massive spread of digital misinformation has been identified as a major global risk and has been alleged to influence elections and threaten democracies.
Dr Olawuyi who revealed that fake news is more rampant amongst the literate and highly educated Nigerians who forwarded messages without any attempt to verify the information because it aligned with their political beliefs and confirmation bias said, “The 21st century has been the weaponisation of information on an unprecedented scale. Powerful new technology makes the manipulation and fabrication of content simple and social networks dramatically amplify falsehoods peddled by States, populist, politicians and dishonest corporate organisations.
“The fight against fake news requires a grounded assessment of the mechanism by which it spread online. If the problem is mainly driven by cognitive limitations, we need to invest in news literacy education. If social media platforms are fostering the creation of echo chambers, algorithms can be tweaked to broaden exposure to diverse views.”
On why journalists should fight fake news said that they risk being manipulated by actors who go beyond the ethnics of public relations by attempting to mislead or corrupt journalists into spreading disinformation.
The last resource person from Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko(AAUA) Department of Mass Communication who spoke on Fake News and Its Consequences on national unity, Dr Olugbenga Abimbola said that fake news is an untrue, fabricated and an outright falsehood with the aim of misleading, distorting and disturbing individual, group, public or government for selfish purpose as become a weapon for promoting national disunity.
Dr Abimbola mentioned some consequences of fake news to include security, political, economics, health, tribal/religious among others and called on bloggers, government, citizens to come together to nip the ugly trend of fake news in the bud.
