Inaccurate information on social media has become a problem in many countries around the world. Researchers know a fair deal about “fake news” in the global North, but much less about what is happening in the global South, particularly in Africa.
In African countries there is a fast-growing population of internet and mobile media users. They have the means to share information quickly and easily. But they can also spread disinformation and misinformation. According to the UNESCO Handbook for Journalism Education and Training, misinformation is information that is false, but believed to be true by the person sharing it. Disinformation is known to be false by the person sharing it.
A recent report by an independent panel on the ethics and credibility of South Africa’s news media makes for worrying reading. The panel, headed by retired judge Kathy Satchwell, was commissioned by the South African National Editors’ Forum following a series of ethical lapses by the Sunday Times. The paper dominated the country’s media landscape for over 100 years. As the largest by circulation it was also considered the most powerful newspaper.
The lapses included factual inaccuracies in reports on allegations of police killings as well as reports on alleged illegal deportations of Zimbabweans. Another major story was about an alleged ‘rogue unit’ within the South African Revenue Service.