One in three queries received by Maldita.es is related to migrants and refugees. In recent months, we have identified that many of them are linked to ethnic and religious minorities. On this occasion, together with the Pluralism and Coexistence Foundation, we are taking a further step to investigate how hoaxes related to these minorities are created, go viral, and impact public discourse.
The Pluralism and Coexistence Foundation is a public sector entity whose objective is to strengthen religious denominations in order to guarantee the effective exercise of religious freedom. Together, we are launching the research project “How Misinformation Fuels Hate Speech: Xenophobia and Religious Intolerance” within the Maldita Migración project, which is supported by Oxfam Intermón.
Over the course of four months, we will examine how misinformation affects religious minorities in Spain—from its origin to its establishment in the collective imagination: which communities are most affected; what messages circulate about them; which narratives are most recurring; the formats in which they spread (photos, videos, WhatsApp chains); how they go viral; and how these messages affect their daily lives.
The study will be coordinated by Yuly Jara from Maldita Migración, with the collaboration of Natalia Diez from Maldito Bulo and Stéphane M. Grueso, coordinator of Maldita Educa. It will result in an academic article led by Raúl Magallón Rosa (1979), author of Unfaking News: How to Combat Misinformation and professor in the Department of Communication at Carlos III University of Madrid. Magallón holds a degree in Journalism and a PhD with European distinction from the Complutense University of Madrid. His research focuses on the study of misinformation and press–state relations.
Here are the competition guidelines. Here is the resolution. Here is the evaluation document.*
How can you help?
This research will only be possible with the help of all Maldita.es community members. We need you.
Let us know via WhatsApp (655 19 85 38) about any content you receive that seems suspicious and targets people belonging to ethnic or religious minorities.
Help us with your superpowers. If your profession is related to religious minorities or you have extensive knowledge about the subject, donate your superpower here.
If you belong to a group affected by these hoaxes and would like to share your experience, you can contact us at [email protected].
Share the debunks: go back to your social networks and spread the fact-checks.
Only together, and everywhere, is it much harder for them to fool us.