Senegal: #NoFalseNewsZone, a comic strip to fight misinformation
Excerpt from the #Nofalsenewszone comic strip launched by the Meta group for French-speaking Africa © RFI / Charlotte Idrac
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2 mins
It is a scourge on social networks: disinformation is spreading at high speed, as the Covid-19 pandemic has shown in particular.
Faced with this phenomenon, the Meta group - which includes the Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp platforms - launched a campaign in Senegal on Tuesday dedicated to French-speaking Africa, with the distribution of a comic strip: #NoFalseNewsZone.
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With our correspondent in Dakar
,
Charlotte Idrac
"
Tell me, you're wearing at least 10 sweaters
," remarks one.
“
Have you seen the video circulating?
“retorts the other.
“
Are you talking about the video that says there is snow falling in
Senegal
?
“, adds the first.
In #NoFalseNewsZone, the story of a student, also a footballer, is told.
He finds himself the subject of a rumor on social networks.
Acid comments, false accusations… How will the young man react?
This is one of the subjects of the comic launched Tuesday by Meta.
“
When he decides to raise awareness in his community, it is in any case better to take a little time to be able to verify the information that is in front of us, rather than to share it again.
We tried in this comic strip to have a situation that we can find on a daily basis so that the message speaks more
, ”explains Olivia Tchamba, head of public policy for French-speaking Africa.
Fact-checking program
The #Nofalsenewszone campaign is also available on the radio and in the field with an awareness tour.
“
We recognize that on our platforms, some people abuse our services.
And for us, the objective is really to be able to educate our users, but also to equip them so that they can recognize misinformation, decide whether to share it or not, but also so that they can raise awareness among the people around them to create an online zone in Senegal where there is no false information
,” according to Balkissa Idé Siddo, Director of Public Policy for Meta in Africa.
At the same time, the Meta group has set up a content verification program, in partnership with some 80 fact-checking structures around the world.
Among these partners,
the independent organization Africa Check
.
Is this campaign a way for Meta to clear its conscience?
Is it sufficient ?
For Samba Dialimpa Badji, editor-in-chief of Africa Check for Francophone Africa in Dakar, the fight against disinformation requires the involvement of all actors.
I do think that this risks being a glass of water on a fire given the scale of the phenomenon and that, if we want to have convincing results, we need the involvement of all the players, whether it is the platforms, political decision-makers, authorities, the media… We must also multiply initiatives on a broader level.
So it's not just a matter of punchy initiatives, but really long-term and far-reaching work.
Already, not all the platforms are doing it, and even those that are already doing it, the initiatives so far are quite timid from my point of view.
And indeed, the authorities should also get more strongly involved and not think that adopting repressive laws is enough to solve the problem.
Samba Dialimpa Badji, Editor-in-Chief of Africa Check
Charlotte Idrac
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Culture
Senegal