Back
As new technologies evolve, one crisis replaces another, and more and more content users move to social media, the amount of unverified information grows and spreads at an unprecedented speed. In such conditions, the role of journalists in collecting and verifying information becomes crucially important, and fact-checkers begin working in newsrooms.
The head of the “Lie detector” department at the DELFI.lt news portal, fact-checker Aistė Meidutė, answers questions regarding how the news media is currently changing, what threats journalists face nowadays, and how to deal with disinformation that spreads at the speed of light.
How, from your point of view, is journalism and the role of a journalist changing today? What are the biggest threats to journalism?
The essential mission of a journalist remains the same – to inform the public quickly and objectively about the most relevant topics. However, in the age of social media, journalists face serious competition from user-generated content, which often rivals professional news media in terms of popularity. The problem is that much of this content is of dubious quality and credibility, spread either by amateurs who do not know enough about the subject or by malicious people who seek to mislead news consumers.
In addition, journalists now must think not only about the content they create and its reliability, but also about new ways to present it attractively to the reader. A modern journalist, in my opinion, is no longer just a news reporter. He or she must be able to learn easily new technologies, adapt quickly, and offer creative solutions.
However, such “content creators” do not shy away from copying the working methods of journalists and pretending to create journalistic content. How to recognize them?
Recently, we have noticed more and more attempts to imitate reliable journalism. Sometimes, news media outlets are simply copied – their logos, website designs, and text structures are appropriated to make users believe that they are visiting a regular popular news media outlet. This method is commonly used by fraudsters, who post fake articles on such fictitious websites and ask users to provide their personal data. This is perhaps the most brutal way to deceive users, but more subtle methods exist as well.
Can you name specific methods aimed at increasing the reliability of the information disseminated?
More and more often we come across websites that spread conspiracy theories and misleading information. Although the information there is often distorted, they rely on various sources, and under each text the name of the author and the date of publication are indicated. Fake articles include commentary from experts who are completely unrelated to the area being commented on.
The attempt to copy professional journalism is very dangerous, primarily because, as pseudo-media portals become increasingly similar to professional news media channels in their form and presentation, it becomes more and more difficult for readers to identify reliable sources, Moreover, such attempts undermine the prestige of the news media and journalists in the eyes of the public.
In recent years, one crisis is replaced by another. What are the rising challenges faced by the news media and journalists in times of crises?
In the period of crises, it is most difficult to present the latest information to the public in such a way that it is still relevant, but also to be able to verify its authenticity and carefully check the facts. Social media networks are used as news media channels, where users share information as soon as it is created. However, in such cases, there is a risk of spreading information that is still unverified. The users of social media networks instantly share such messages without thinking too much, and when it turns out that the information is not correct, journalists must do a lot of work to refute such claims.
In times of crises, the flow of disinformation increases as well. Malicious agents do not miss any opportunity to incite further the discontent among individual social groups, which are already the most vulnerable. Therefore, journalists have to work in conditions of increased stress.
Where does disinformation circulate the most – on which platforms, which sources?
The places where disinformation affects more or less every user are social media networks, namely Facebook, YouTube, TikTok or Instagram, as well as messaging platforms, such as WhatsApp or Telegram, where users can share freely misleading content and conspiracy theories.
What kind of disinformation (in what field, topic or how constructed) is the most effective?
The trickiest thing is when it comes to video footage: low-quality footage from various protests or user-generated content in which people narrate events that allegedly happened to them. Some people are also affected by the testimonies of social media users, emotional comments that tell stories that allegedly happened to them or their relatives.
How much of a fact-checker’s job is to search for false statements, and how much is to verify them?
Both stages of work require time and concentration. Every day, fact-checkers must sift through vast amounts of information and to assess which false claims cause the most harm, which of them spread the fastest or may start to spread soon, which of them are relevant and which are not. However, it takes no less time to evaluate the sources and to collect information in order to clarify the claims as accurately and objectively as possible.
How many pieces of news do you check per day? How long, on average, does it take you to analyze one piece of news?
Each month, we check approximately 50 to 70 statements in Lithuanian and Russian. Less complicated cases, such as mixing up famous people’s quotes, posting a fake image, or attaching the wrong context to it, do not take up much time. However, we are also faced with topics that require deeper analysis, where specific scientific and medical knowledge is needed. In such cases, we often turn to experts in these fields, who could explain these complex topics to the public as clearly and precisely as possible.
What portion of claims that you verify turn out to be fake news? How many of them do you find to be indeed correct?
The vast majority of claims we set out to check turn out to be false. Every day, we review hundreds of messages on social networks and news articles on various websites, we compare the information that is spread, look for repetitions, recognize similar information manipulation techniques. All of this allows us to identify effectively false content.
Looking at the situation in Lithuania, what would you identify as the most important steps of public policy in the fight against disinformation? What should be done immediately in the news media, education, or other fields to make society more resilient?
First of all, I am convinced that Lithuanian schools still lack quality education in the fields of information technology and media literacy. These two important topics should go hand in hand in education programs. In addition, there is a lack of training in these areas designed for older people. Also, especially in the period of crises, more transparency and clarity from the institutions is needed since the spreaders of disinformation tend to fill the existing information vacuum with misleading content. Undoubtedly, the news media has room for improvement as well. It is about time that we moved away from clickbait headlines that also manipulate readers and are, thus, dishonest in their purpose and form.
Who do you think could and should be the most important initiators of new activities that would make a positive change?
I think that, to make a real change, we need to work together. I would say that the contribution from the news media, non-governmental organizations, and academia is very important.
Thank you for your answers.
Interview conducted by Kristina Berksun, translated by Aistė Turčinavičiūtė
