Browse Training, Advocacy and Codes of Practice Resources

 

Complete Guide/Countering Disinformation

While disinformation has long been a challenge to democracy, the digital age necessitates a renewed commitment and fresh urgency to match the scale, speed, and pervasiveness of online information threats. Meaningful access to a healthy information environment is integral to the functioning of free, rights-respecting societies; as such, countering disinformation and promoting information integrity are necessary priorities for ensuring democracy can thrive globally in the next century and beyond.

 

Disinformation Archives - Open Policy Advocacy: Mozilla’s official Blog on Open Internet Policy Initiatives and Developments

Mozilla believes that greater transparency into the online advertising ecosystem can empower individuals, safeguard advertisers’ interests, and address systemic harms. Lawmakers around the world are stepping up to help realize that vision.

 

Code of Practice on Disinformation

Online platforms, leading social networks, advertisers and advertising industry agreed on a Code of Practice to address the spread of disinformation.

 

Meet the researchers and activists fighting misinformation

The Election Integrity Partnership and Disinfo Defense League are taking vastly different approaches to protect people from falsehoods that could compromise their vote.

 

Guidelines for Preventing the Spread of Misinformation and Disinformation

The spread of misinformation has become a significant threat to our country. News professionals and newsroom managers must be part of the solution. Journalists are the front-line protection against misleading information on all platforms. We recommend the following guidelines.

 

Network Contagion Research Institute: Training Program in Cyber Social Network Threat Detection and Strategy

NC Labs partners with major universities to create the nation’s foremost training/internship program for the paradigm of cyber-social threat identification and forecasting.

 

European Commission: Q&A: Guidance to strengthen the Code of Practice on Disinformation

The Code of Practice sets out principles and commitments for online platforms and the advertising sector to counter the spread of disinformation online in the EU, which its signatories agreed to implement. It is the world’s first self-regulatory instrument to fight disinformation. The 2020 assessment of the Code showed that it is a good example of structured cooperation with online platforms to ensure greater transparency and accountability. It also identified shortcomings, including inconsistent and incomplete application across platforms and EU countries, gaps in the coverage of the Code’s commitments which the Guidance to Strengthen the Code of Practice on Disinformation seeks to address.

 

The Role of Cyber “Elves” Against Russian Information Operations

Adéla Klečková. January 2022.
Guerrillas of brave elves taking down hordes of dark trolls in an ideological conflict over the future of humanity. This is not the beginning of a fantasy novel but a somewhat accurate description of everyday realities in cyberspace across Europe. The “elves”—a group of cyber activists fighting pro-Kremlin propaganda and disinformation campaigns—are a growing yet little-known phenomenon. Having started in 2014 as less than 20 individuals in Lithuania, the movement expanded to 13 Central and Eastern European countries, and it counted about 4,000 volunteers by 2021. Given the size and the pace of growth of the elves, together with their successful yet unadvertised missions, it would be unwise to overlook or underestimate this movement.

 

Call for submissions: Challenges to freedom of opinion and expression in times of conflicts and disturbances

United Nations. July 11, 2022.

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, Irene Khan will focus her next thematic report on challenges to freedom of opinion and expression in times of armed conflict and other disturbances for the 77th session of the UN General Assembly in October 2022.

 

Call for interest to become a Signatory of the 2022 Code of Practice on Disinformation

European Commission. July 14, 2022.

The Commission and current signatories have launched a call for interest for new signatories to join the 2022 Code of Practice on Disinformation. The call is addressed to a wide range of stakeholders including providers of online services that participate in the dissemination of content to the public such as social media, private messaging applications and search engines; players from the online advertising industry; providers of e-payment services, e-commerce platforms, crowdfunding/donation systems, which may be used to spread disinformation; stakeholders who provide technological solutions to combat disinformation; fact checkers and civil society organizations specializing in countering disinformation.

 

The 2022 Code of Practice on Disinformation

European Commission. June 2022.

Major online platforms, emerging and specialized platforms, players in the advertising industry, fact checkers, research and civil society organizations delivered a strengthened Code of Practice on Disinformation following the Commission’s Guidance of May 2021.

Signatories committed to act in several domains, such as demonetizing the dissemination of disinformation; ensuring the transparency of political advertising; empowering users; enhancing the cooperation with fact checkers; and providing researchers with better access to data.

 

Source Criticism and Mediated Disinformation (SCAM) - Oslo research project

The Source Criticism and Mediated Disinformation (SCAM) project’s main objective is to develop principles for and practices of digital source criticism and media and information literacy in relation to emerging technologies, with special emphasis on detection and countering of disinformation. This objective includes the advancement of journalists’ ability to critically scrutinize sources and information in a digital age; journalism educator’s ability to teach digital source criticism; and an improvement of the skills and knowledge needed to enhance media and information literacy in societies at large.

 

Defending against disinformation: Canada can learn from Estonia and Finland about attacking the problem by emphasizing media literacy in elementary and high schools.

Policy Options. July 13, 2022.

The truck convoy occupation of downtown Ottawa should be a wake-up call to all Canadians that we need to act quickly to address the active threat of disinformation. While some provincial education curriculums provide for media literacy courses in school, none of them are mandatory, many of them are out of date with the current digital environment, and there isn’t a consistent approach across the country.

 

Do Canadian kids need better media literacy?

National Observer. December 2020

"Because of the speed of access to information, cognitively, people do not have time to process and to validate the kind of information they receive, so there are a lot of biases that interfere," said Hassan, who is also a UNESCO co-chair for the prevention of radicalization.

Hassan is calling for stronger standards for how social media companies manage content on their platforms and a national strategy and mandatory curriculums covering digital media literacy in schools.

 

Psychological inoculation improves resilience against misinformation on social media

SCIENCE ADVANCES. August 24, 2022
Online misinformation continues to have adverse consequences for society. Inoculation theory has been put forward as a way to reduce susceptibility to misinformation by informing people about how they might be misinformed, but its scalability has been elusive both at a theoretical level and a practical level. We developed five short videos that inoculate people against manipulation techniques commonly used in misinformation: emotionally manipulative language, incoherence, false dichotomies, scapegoating, and ad hominem attacks. In seven preregistered studies, i.e., six randomized controlled studies (n = 6464) and an ecologically valid field study on YouTube (n = 22,632), we find that these videos improve manipulation technique recognition, boost confidence in spotting these techniques, increase people’s ability to discern trustworthy from untrustworthy content, and improve the quality of their sharing decisions. These effects are robust across the political spectrum and a wide variety of covariates. We show that psychological inoculation campaigns on social media are effective at improving misinformation resilience at scale.

The world stands together for Global Media and Information Literacy Week 2022

UNESCO. October 28, 2022

UNESCO mobilized its MIL partners and networks to observe the Week with own celebrations and as of today, we are able to link up over 900 small and large events around the world, sending a thundering message of the urgency of media and information literacy at all levels of society.

Disinformation is a growing crisis. Governments, business and individuals can help stem the tide

World Economic Forum. October 11, 2022

Disinformation is a raging problem right now, but it isn’t new. Roman generals used it to win battles, leaders relied on it during the Black Plague to persecute religious groups, and spies in the 20th century used it to destabilize foreign governments.

What has changed is the speed and scope of the abuse. The internet and social media have dramatically magnified the reach of this age-old tactic, enabling everyone from teens to tyrants to spread lies. And while the distortions have become more pervasive, and the time and inclination to evaluate facts have shrunk.

Collaboration is key to countering online misinformation about noncommunicable diseases –new WHO/Europe toolkit shows how

World Health Organization. October 22, 2022

The spread of health-related misinformation poses a growing threat to societies, with more and more people turning to search engines or social media for their health information. Misguided perceptions of health risks – such as smoking, alcohol consumption, unhealthy diets or physical inactivity – can lead to numerous life-changing and potentially deadly noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) like cancer or diabetes.

WHO/Europe’s new “Toolkit for tackling misinformation on noncommunicable diseases” explores why current measures implemented in the European Region are not achieving optimal results, and makes recommendations on collaborative action to better protect people from misinformation.

How to Outsmart Election Disinformation

ProPublica. Karim & Cynthia Gordy Giwa. October 21, 2022  

It’s time to talk about misinformation. You already know it’s all around us, but understanding how to spot it and defend against it is one of the most important parts of being an informed and active voter.

How to Report Election Misinformation and Disinformation Online

Asian Americans Advancing Justice. October 28, 2022

Mis- and disinformation about elections is harmful to our democracy. If you see content online about elections that could suppress or mislead voters, you can report it. Read through our easily shareable cheat sheet to learn how to report disinformation on different platforms, dos and don'ts of reporting disinfo, and key definitions.

Countering Disinformation with IVLP Exchanges

Global Ties U.S. Bernice Morlet. October 25, 2022  

Last month, the World Affairs Council of St. Louis collaborated with Meridian International Center to host an inter-regional International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) from Australia, India, and Japan on the topic “Identifying and Combating Disinformation in the Quad.” The IVLP visitors met with a range of professional resources, including professors at the University of Missouri School of Journalism, journalists from St. Louis Public Radio, and a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist. In addition to journalists, they met with government communications teams for the Missouri State Auditor and St. Louis County Prosecutor. They even had the opportunity to visit a city court room with the presiding Judge in St. Louis County, and talk about mis/disinformation from a socio-political point of view.

In a world of disinformation, media literacy matters now more than ever

Press reader. Kelly Banks. October 17, 2022  

“We now all have direct access to communicate in the public sphere — and, if we choose, to create, circulate and amplify propaganda,” Mercieca wrote. “A lot of people use their social media connections and platforms to knowingly and unknowingly spread misinformation, disinformation, conspiracy and partisan talking points — all forms of propaganda. We’re all propagandists now.”

“Media Literacy is a 21st-century approach to education. It provides a framework to access, analyze, evaluate, create and participate with messages in a variety of forms — from print to video to the Internet. Media literacy builds an understanding of the role of media in society as well as essential skills of inquiry and self-expression necessary for citizens of a democracy.”

High-school students should be taught to spot fake videos and disinformation, public safety minister says

Globe and Mail. Marie Woolf. November 18, 2022  

High-school students should be educated about how to spot fake videos and photos and disinformation, because they are so prevalent online, federal Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino says. Speaking from the G7 summit in Germany, the minister said disinformation is “one of the most pervasive threats to all our democracies right now” and more needs to be done to raise awareness and equip Canadians to navigate its dangers.

20 Young Changemakers Join the Fight against Misinformation and Disinformation in ASEAN

Asean Foundation. October 10, 2022

ASEAN Foundation, with support from the US Mission to ASEAN and Google.org, proudly officiated today 20 members of the ASEAN Youth Advisory Group (ASEAN YAG) who will lead an awareness-raising campaign to combat misinformation and disinformation across ASEAN.

ASEAN is not immune to the threat of misinformation and disinformation. With increasing internet penetration across the ASEAN region, information has a powerful role in society, but there is a lag in awareness of how to identify misleading information. The members of ASEAN YAG will play pivotal roles in bridging this gap by spreading awareness about the importance of digital literacy in their communities through creative, and, most importantly, localised approach.

DEBUNK: Disinformation Analysis Center


Debunk.org, is an independent technology think tank and non-governmental organization that researches disinformation and runs educational media literacy campaigns. Debunk.org carries out disinformation analyses in the Baltic countries, Poland, Georgia and Montenegro, as well as in the United States and North Macedonia.

Code of Practice on Disinformation: new reports available in the Transparency Centre

European Commission. September 26, 2023.

All major online platform signatories of the Code of Practice on Disinformation (Google, Meta, Microsoft and TikTok) have delivered a second set of reports on the implementation of the Code of Practice.

Overall, this new reporting round demonstrates the signatories' commitment to offering additional insights into their efforts to combat disinformation. They have presented more consistent data covering a complete 6-month reporting period. The platforms have made progress in enhancing the granularity and depth of their data, addressing certain data gaps identified in their initial baseline reports from February 2023. However, there is still room for improvement in providing more precise, comprehensive, and meaningful data.

Press statement of Vice-President Jourova on the meeting with the Code of Practice on Disinformation Signatories

European Commission. September 26, 2023.

The Code now has 44 signatories, including major online platforms such as Facebook, Google, YouTube, TikTok or LinkedIn, but it also includes advertising industry and civil society.

It is the first time that platform signatories report with such extensive data – covering 6 months – about their efforts to fight online disinformation. The new set of reports marks a new phase for the Code and brings important novelties. Disinformation is not new, nor does it happen only on online platforms. But with increasing digitalization, malicious actors have gained new ways to try to undermine our democracies.