‘Think! Fest’ debate focuses on ‘fake news’
LIES, misinformation and propaganda aren’t new concepts in the world of news media. But of late there seems to be more dishonesty disseminated through conventional media and social media.
US President Donald Trump has used the term “fake news” in an attempt to discredit information he doesn’t agree with.
The Guptas have been on the receiving end of scathing news reports over the years and they too have cried wolf about being the targets of misinformation and an alleged white monopoly capitalist conspiracy. As part of the National Arts Festival’s
Think! Fest – a series of discussions and lectures on a range of topics – the fake news debate saw several established panellists sit together to debate and explore “fake news”.
Chaired by Anthea Garman, the debate panel included former Mail & Guardian and Huff Post SA editor-in-chief Verashni Pillay and editor of News24 Adriaan Basson. He opened the debate on the leaks which were unearthed by the ama Bhungane investigative unit and disseminated through a joint operation with News24 and the Daily Maverick.
He discussed Trump’s journey to the White House and the coinciding rise of farright US news, opinion and commentary website Breitbart.
Thandi Smith, head of the policy unit at Media Monitoring Africa, explained the media’s responsibility to regain trust.
Kayla Roux, a digital media lecturer at Rhodes University, explained how Facebook’s algorithm may direct imbalanced content to your timeline.
Mark Oppenheimer, a practising advocate and writer, discussed the concept of “alternative facts”. The term was coined by Trump’s counsellor, Kellyanne Conway after White House press secretary Sean Spicer made false claims that Trump’s presidential inauguration attendance numbers were the highest to date.
More stringent regulatory systems are vital to regain the media’s integrity.