Journalists urged to fact-check

Centre for Innovation and Technology (CITE) director Zenzele Ndebele has urged the media in Zimbabwe to invest in fact-checking to guard against misinformation.

Ndebele made the remarks during a meeting attended by civic groups and journalists which was organised by CITE and the International Republican Institute (IRI) in Bulawayo last week.

“There is little that is being done by the media to correct issues of misinformation and disinformation.

“I think you can count less than five if I being generous to organisations in Zimbabwe that even have a factchecking desk or that look at fact-checking,” Ndebele said.

“That means misinformation is happening and their stories are turned into something else…They seem not to bother and yet people consume fake news every day more than they actually consume proper stories.”

IRI programmes officer Michelle Biriwasha said fake news had the potential to discredit the outcome of the elections.