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Identifying and combating fake news and disinformation, which spreads hate and divisiveness

Mar. 30, 2020   •   Architi Batra

“A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.”

This quote by Mark Twain quite aptly sums up the state of misinformation and fake news that is taking over everyone’s digital screens. In our current worldview, no one can underestimate the reliance, importance, and dependence we have on these forms of communication. Traditional forms of media and journalism are still present; however, innovative journalistic practices and digital media platforms are increasingly being used, in addition to or in replacement of, the old forms. The lightning-fast speed of digital media is so quick that the current mechanisms are not able to debunk the false news in a timely manner.

In the age of free speech and democracy, it is hard to strike a balance between mitigating fake news and upholding the morals of a free and fair media. Over time, these harmful activities create such an impact that eventually they cause a behavioral change that has the potential to disrupt governance and society. The 2016 United States election campaign saw such efforts being made to disseminate false material and change voters’ patterns.

From the general elections to the abrogation of Article 370 as well the Delhi-based Citizenship Amendment Act riots to the COVID-19 pandemic, India has become a welcome playground for extensive dissemination of fake news. Fact-checkers have needed to expand their workforce and scope with multiple languages and more manpower and systems. Jency Jacob, the managing director of the leading fact-checking website in India BOOM, has said that 2019 has been a unique and the busiest year so far. Check4Spam, a non-profit entity that checks and verifies posts on social media said that there was a 20% increase in the number of posts received for verification in 2019.

With the Internet being a fairly inexpensive commodity, India has about 480 million internet users. Whatsapp has its largest market in India with about more than 400 million users. This nation has been no stranger to attacks and violence incited by social media platforms whose sole aim is to cause harm and deceive the public. The false spread of information about cyclones and child abuse has created instances of violence. In Jharkhand, unverified Whatsapp messages carrying news of child abductors led to villagers attacking strangers which resulted in 7 deaths. The Election Commission has even tried to set a code of ethics in order to avoid abuse of social media by political parties during the elections.

The current pandemic of COVID-19 tells us how important it is for us to find a way to combat the false news issue. Indians have a habituated tendency to forward messages on Whatsapp without checking the source. The Coronavirus has seen information on home remedies to messages containing conspiracy theories being passed around. As a consequence, a farmer in Karnataka buried over 6,000 chickens alive due to rampant rumours about the spread of the virus due to eating meat. Many people, who have communicated about drinking cow urine as a cure, have been criticized by fact-checkers. Many people believe these falsities as many Indians are newer to the Internet age and are vulnerable to such information. The rumours by some religious fanatics that going to a mosque and praying 5 times a day would immunize one from the virus led to more than 1/3rd of the coronavirus cases in India, with their breeding ground at a common markaz in Delhi's Nizamuddin area.

Many nations have relied on technology companies or individuals to be the accountable parties in identifying these rumors and false allegations. India has given the administrators of the media platforms the accountability to counter fake news. Due to the ‘Whatsapp forwarding culture’ Indians have, WhatsApp limited forwarding messages to five persons and Facebook built an unbiased Articifical Intelligence system to combat false information. However, these mechanisms are not strong enough, especially with the number of rumors and propaganda being produced constantly. As recent as March 2020, the Indian Government has issued a directive to all media companies to take proactive measures to stop the spread of fake news in light of the COVID – 19 pandemic. Some of the measures are:

  • Facebook (including Instagram and Messenger) will limit the spread of an article once it has been recorded as false.
  • Twitter is placing the latest facts on top of timelines for easier access and has created a page as an information hub, along with the WHO and the Ministry of Health.
  • TikTok has claimed that it will remove deliberate attempts to deceive the public but this still remains reliant on user reports.
  • A Chatbot on Whatsapp called “MyGov Corona Helpdesk’ has been created to address FAQs about the pandemic, which is verified by the Ministry of Health.

With lockdowns, shutdowns and quarantine situations seen in 2019-2020, the only way to be aware and connected is online. In 2019, the Supreme Court refused to entertain a plea directed to the Centre that aimed to frame guidelines and laws to suppress the spread of fake news on digital platforms. It might be time to revisit this approach as we can see these platforms being misused greatly with no proper combat mechanism in place. The concrete moves of enacting legislation have to be taken carefully and with due care so as not to stifle the freedom of speech and expression that is guaranteed by the Constitution. The intent and focus must remain to protect and safeguard citizens and the nation from the violence and disruptions resulting from fake news. There can be no vagueness with respect to the boundaries drawn by the law and the private spheres of communication must be upheld.

The key to combat and limit the flow of fake news is to ensure that all the major players are working together to tackle the problem; media houses, social platforms, newspapers, technology companies, the government as well individuals have to battle against it. A strong professional journalism presence and awareness among the students, adults, and citizens is the most effective way to ensure the stoppage of these rumours. The trust in the system of information flow has to be built over time and a collective effort from the policy and individual level needs to be made; otherwise, the tool of social media might end up being more harmful than beneficial.

[The author, Simran Anneka Lobo, is a 1st-year law student from Government Law College, Mumbai and has a keen interest in the interconnection between law, politics, and society. ]


REFERENCES

  • Kunal Purohit, Misinformation, fake news spark India coronavirus fears, ALJAZEERA NEWS (March. 10, 2020), https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/03/misinformation-fake-news-spark-india-coronavirus-fears-200309051731540.html
  • India Launches WhatsApp Chatbot To Curb Fake News On Coronavirus, BLOOMBERG QUINT,(March 21, 2020, 8:59 PM IST), https://www.bloombergquint.com/coronavirus-outbreak/india-launches-whatsapp-chatbot-to-curb-fake-news-on-coronavirus
  • Shouvik Das, Fighting Fake News on COVID-19: What India’s Social Media Companies are Doing, NEWS18, (27 March 2020, 7:37 PM IST), https://www.news18.com/news/tech/fighting-fake-news-on-covid-19-what-indias-social-media-companies-are-doing-2554085.html
  • Daniel Funke and Daniela Flamini, A guide to anti-misinformation actions around the world, POYNTER.ORG,(April 9, 2018),https://www.poynter.org/ifcn/anti-misinformation-actions/#india
  • Darrell M. West, How to combat fake news and disinformation, BROOKING. EDU, (December 18, 2017), https://www.brookings.edu/research/how-to-combat-fake-news-and-disinformation/
  • SC dismisses plea seeking framing of laws against fake news, ECONOMIC TIMES, ( April 8, 2019, 06:40 PM IST) https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/sc-dismisses-plea-seeking-framing-of-laws-against-fake-news/articleshow/68780994.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

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