International Fact-Checking Day 2022: At war against disinformation

The disinformation shifted from focusing on old photos and videos shared as current or videos with false subtitles to other formats that required applying techniques related to OSINT (Open Source Intelligence). That’s why Maldita.es created ‘The O Team’ – O for OSINT– to investigate together with this community of awesome people who lend their superpowers and provide context to videos and images related to the Russian attack on Ukraine.

In this evolution of hoaxes, we also saw how some COVID-19 denialist groups mutated into pro-Putin disinformers, and we studied how disinformation doubly victimizes people who are already suffering the consequences of the crossfire. Of course, all these investigations and debunkings have gone to channels where disinformation is circulating: through our compilations of debunked hoaxes on TikTok and in the Maldita Twitchería events, where we have also made science and technology outreach on issues related to the Russian attack on Ukraine.

In addition to this, in 2021 we faced several disinformation crises, such as the arrival of immigrants to Ceuta in May 2021. The elections for the Madrid Community also triggered an increase in the number of hoaxes, as did the Taliban’s rise to power in Afghanistan. The eruption of the Cumbre Vieja volcano in La Palma also led to a great deal of disinformation circulating, and during this time, we have not stopped debunking hoaxes about the coronavirus pandemic. Especially disinformation and false claims about COVID-19 vaccines.

Factchequeado born to fight disinformation in Spanish in the United States

#UkraineFacts was not the only alliance we have driven this last year. Maldita.es (Spain) and Chequeado (Argentina) have joined forces to fight against disinformation in Spanish in the United States. This is how Factchequeado.com was born.

Hispanic communities in the United States are particularly vulnerable to disinformation, which became very clear during the COVID-19 pandemic. Most of the country’s fact-checkers do verifications in English and almost never in Spanish, leaving this community more exposed to disinforming content.

We understand that to fight against this situation, journalism that functions as a public interest service is necessary, being transparent, collaborative, innovative, and of quality. And also, providing educational tools so that the Hispanic and Latino community in the US can base their decisions on data and evidence instead of rumors and prejudices. Factchequeado.com was born precisely to create a community of Hispanics and Latinos that counteracts disinformation in Spanish in the United States.

The fight against disinformation in Europe

We fact-checkers dedicate ourselves to monitoring political, public, and journalistic discourse so that we are not fooled by hoaxes and disinformation affecting the way we think, vote, etc. But, who watches over us? For that, we have tools that ensure we do our job well. Let’s say we create codes of good practice and among ourselves ensure the rest comply.

This is where the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) exists, but there is also a European code of self-regulation approved in 2018 and signed by many of the main digital platforms like Google, Facebook, Twitter, or Microsoft. But we think that code is insufficient, and therefore, some time ago, we wondered why not make a new one.

With that goal, the European Fact-Checking Standards Project consortium was created, led by Maldita.es, which will create the European Code of Professional Integrity for Independent Verifiers. Together with AFP (France), Correctiv (Germany), Demagog (Poland), Pagella Politica / Facta (Italy), and EU DisinfoLab (Belgium), we will use our experience and contacts within the verifier and OSINT organizations community to define the standards of independence, transparency, and methodological and journalistic quality necessary to be recognized as independent verification organizations in Europe.

We remain in Europe to tell you that in 2021, Iberifieralso launched, a consortium of researchers, fact-checkers, and research centers from Spain and Portugal, of which Maldita.es is a part, that has created an Iberian observatory to monitor the threats of disinformation in the region.

A total of 23 institutions from both countries are part of this observatory endorsed by the European Commission, which centers its research on five lines of work related to the fight against disinformation.

We call for efforts against disinformation on YouTube

Fact-checkers monitor platforms such as social networks where disinformation circulates and try to stop it with our debunkings. But these platforms also have to take measures against the lies spread through their channels.

Specifically, for YouTube, we have seen how it plays a leading role in organizing coordinated networks for spreading disinformation. During the COVID-19 pandemic, this was even more evident, and not only in Spain, but everywhere, disinformers have used this video platform to lie, weave alliances, and raise money.

So, in January 2022, more than 80 verification organizations from more than 40 countries, including Maldita.es, published an open letter to YouTube’s CEO demanding four measures: significant transparency on how disinformation moves on the platform and publicly disclosing their measures to address it; focusing on providing context instead of removing videos; acting against repeat offenders, and expanding these efforts to languages other than English.

Our intention is to make the platform a place where it is much harder for disinformation and disinformation to become weapons against its users, and for this, all the signatories are willing to help YouTube implement its measures.

This year we were awarded the European Press Prize!

As you can see, it has been an intense year, but we have also seen our efforts recognized. We have received several awards, and there is one that has made us particularly excited. After three years among the finalists, we were awarded the European Press Prize.

Specifically, we won the European Journalism Prize in the innovation category for our WhatsApp chatbot  (+34 644 229 319) to fight against disinformation.

Our Maldito Dato section has also been awarded several times since the last International Fact-Checking Day: it received two GO! Awards for civil society from the Province of Valencia for bringing the Transparency Law closer to citizens. It also won the Open Data Award from the Junta de Castilla y León and received a special mention in the API Award for Local Journalism 2021.

Maldita Ciencia also won the Boehringer Ingelheim Award for Journalism and Health Dissemination this year for its Twitch broadcasts. Maldita Migración won the Spanish Association for Human Rights (APDHE) Award 2021, and Maldita Educa was awarded by PantallasAmigas for its work in Media and Digital Literacy.

Community and Superpowers: fundamental to making Maldita.es

All the work we have carried out and all those recognitions would not be possible without the support of our community of Malditos and Malditas. With you, we detect, verify, debunk, and viralize the truth. In addition, with your superpowers, you help us dismantle lies.

If you are not yet part of our community, enter this link:

BECOME MALDITO, BECOME MALDITA

«Everyone has something, one or more areas in which they have super deep knowledge.” This is how our dear Paula González, an expert in cybersecurity, summed up that everyone has knowledge that can be useful for Maldita.es. In this link, you can see several malditos and malditas who have collaborated with us on more than one occasion, presenting their superpowers.

Want to know more about disinformation and fact-checking?

At Maldita.es, we believe that the best way to fight against hoaxes is through education. That’s why we have a section dedicated to media literacy, and in 2021 we launched a website: the Maldita Educa website with all the educational resources to fight against disinformation.

In our agenda, you can see the events, courses, congresses, etc., in which we plan to participate. Also, there is a news section and in the resources tab, you have infographics, didactic sheets, videos, or games to learn (or teach) how to verify.

In addition, you have our Verification Toolbox with links for reverse image search, video search, advanced social media search, or about geolocation.

Lastly, in the 2021/2022 course, the Maldita.es and URJC Master’s program was launched with the collaboration of seven media outlets.

These are some of the things we have done this year, and many more are left out… Don’t forget to drop by the Maldita Twitchería event on April 5th to celebrate International Fact-Checking Day so we can tell you about them.

Thank you all for being there one more year! Because together, it’s much harder for them to fool us!