Google, Meta and other social networks propose an alliance to combat misinformation

The network, which bills itself as the ‘Fighting Misinformation Alliance’, is expected to join major social media platforms. According to a five-page proposal sent by the social media companies to the Ministry of Electronics and IT, the alliance will act as a “certification body” that will verify who is a “trustworthy” fact-checker.

To be sure, this network, if and when it is established, will only be empowered to verify information that is not related to the Union government. On Thursday, the IT Ministry notified new amendments to the Information Technology Rules 2021 under which it will establish a dedicated fact-checking unit to act on government-related misinformation.

“The industry has sent MeitY a proposal today (Thursday) on how they want to create a self-regulatory network of data verifiers for information that is not related to the central government,” a senior government official told this newspaper, who requested the anonymity. the discussions are at a preliminary stage. “The platforms propose that, under the Misinformation Combat Alliance, they will create a network of Indian and foreign fact-checkers.”

Queries sent to Meta and Google did not get a response as of press time.

the indian expressin February, he had reported on a closed-door meeting between IT Ministry officials and representatives of major social media companies to discuss creating an indigenous network of fact-checkers that would flag misinformation on their platforms. It was not related to the government.

Social media platforms already rely on a number of fact-checkers. For example, Meta works with fact-checkers certified by the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN), which was established in 2015 at the US-based Poynter Institute. IFCN members review and rate stories for accuracy. through original reporting, which may include interviewing primary sources, consulting public data, and conducting media analysis, including photos and videos.

Despite several Indian outlets being part of the IFCN network, it is known that the government does not want a network based in another part of the world to act on content emanating from the country. Instead, he wants to build a local network of fact-checkers.

Disinformation is a major problem in India, due to its diverse demographics and a large population that is just beginning to access the Internet. India is also among the largest markets for major social media platforms like FacebookWhatsApp and YouTube, which together have hundreds of millions of active users.

According to a study published in the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions journal of Sage in 2021, India had produced the most misinformation on social media about COVID-19 due to the higher rate of Internet penetration in the country, the increase in the consumption of social networks and the lack of Internet literacy of users.