Category Archives: Fake News

Gangland criminals are now producing expensive fake news media content for sharing across online platforms in a bid to convince people there was a State conspiracy against them and to rebrand themselves as businessmen, the senior Garda officer in charge of the investigation of Irish organised crime has said.

Assistant Commissioner John ODriscoll, who leads the Gardas Organised Crime Section, said he was even aware of documents purporting to come from international law enforcement that had been forged and had been included in a fake news book circulated online.

He added when he viewed some of the videos that had been produced for sharing online including one that reenacted the Kinahan-Hutch feud shooting attack at the Regency Hotel in north Dublin exactly five years ago he was struck by the high production values and how money such content would cost.

Mr ODriscoll did not refer to the Kinahan cartel but the content he was referring to was produced at the behest of the gang and was very favourable to them.

Content such as a rap music video, a documentary and a book released online all portrayed Daniel Kinahan as a successful boxing promoter against whom a State conspiracy was now underway in his native Ireland to bring him down.

Mr ODriscoll said while anyone was free to criticise the Garda, criticism usually takes a different form to that seen in the fake news produced by some Irish criminal elements of late. Because the people at whose behest the fake news was produced, including the re-enactment of the attack on the Regency Hotel, were anonymous it was difficult to challenge them.

It is difficult to refute any of the bizarre allegations that are made, he said speaking to the media in Garda Headquarters, Phoenix Park, Dublin, about the Gardas response to organised crime gangs.

My main observation [on viewing the fake news content] is it is interesting to see the expense that would have been involved in putting forward ones view or criticisms of the State and the Garda Sochna.

As I say, (people) are quite entitled to criticise us and ask questions of us, but that is fascinating in terms of the extent to which these particular individuals have the capacity to resource that particular way of presenting their case.

The media event Mr ODriscoll was addressing was being held on the day before the fifth anniversary of an attack on Dubliner Daniel Kinahan and his associates at a boxing match weigh-in at the Regency Hotel, north Dublin, during which his associate David Byrne (34) was killed and others were wounded, though Kinahan escaped uninjured.

Mr ODriscoll added the Garda was operating on the basis the Kinahan-Hutch feud was ongoing, though there had been no feud murders for three years.

The Garda anticipated further attacks and the crimes committed to date were still under investigation. Specifically, detectives investigating the attack at the Regency Hotel had put further evidence in files and sent them to the DPP, whose office was currently reviewing that material to determine if criminal charges should be taken against suspects.

Daniel Kinahan has alleged, in a statement realised last week to the BBC Panorama programme via his British-based lawyer, he could never get a fair trial in the Republic and that Garda evidence in recent court cases was effectively opinion presented as fact.

When asked about this, Mr ODriscoll said he could not reply in relation to any named person. But he said recent court decisions and rulings relating to Kinahan-Hutch feud convictions had clearly accepted the evidence presented by the Garda as factual and reliable.

Mr ODriscoll said the Garda was continuing to dismantle the Kinahan cartel and was working with international law enforcement in that regard.

Members of the Garda Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau had visited the United Arab Emirates where members of the cartel were based.

Overall, the bureau had seized drugs valued at 206 million since its establishment in 2015 as well as 133 firearms, 5,516 rounds of ammunition and 21.7 million in cash. Last year alone it seized drugs valued at 37.7m, 23 firearms, 2,131 rounds of ammunition and made 228 arrests while also seizing 8 million in cash. Since the start of 2019 some 65 criminals were convicted in the courts and jailed for five years or more arising from investigations by the bureau.

The seizures, arrests and convictions were not all related to the Kinahan cartel or its feud with the Hutch group, as they also included other gangs.

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Gangland criminals spreading expensive fake news, garda warn - The Irish Times

Broad-based knowledge, integrated across multiple viewpoints and lenses and informed with critical thinking, is the foundation of the liberal education philosophy of teaching and learning.

The current generation of students comes to post-secondary education with two broad goals.

Firstly, they want training for careers: they want to study topics that interest them in order to obtain good jobs and build satisfying and productive work lives.

In recent years, evidence has been mounting about how quickly the job market is changing. COVID is exacerbating this. Many jobs that exist today may disappear tomorrow, and many of the jobs our students will apply for in 10 years dont even exist yet.

Most people will change not just jobs but careers multiple times over the coming decades. This means the emphasis of education should not only be on learning specific content or particular techniques, but in addition the ability to learn new concepts quickly and well, to look for ways to improve your work, and to be resourceful and resilient in a changing employment world.

Secondly, this generation of students also considers deeply the many problems with our world, and beyond job prospects they want to impact the world around them to help us live better lives. A recent CNN article reports the number of students applying to medical school in the U.S. has risen 18 per cent, in what is being called the Fauci effect. Here, at the University of Lethbridge, we have seen a strong increase in applications for public health, counselling psychology and therapeutic recreation programs, and I suspect other post-secondaries are seeing similar increases for their health-related offerings.

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Opinion: Fake news, pandemic, evolving job market a liberal education is needed more than ever - Calgary Herald

TikTok is tackling the scourge of mis- and disinformation by launching a new feature that highlights the uncertainty of unverified content, aiming to slow its spread across the app.

From today in the US and Canada, and February 22 in the UK, any video that TikToks content moderators or fact checkers have tried to check but cannot immediately verify will have a banner appended to it saying that the video may contain unsubstantiated content.

If a viewer then tries to share that video, a further prompt will appear reminding them that the video contains content that couldnt be verified, and asking them if they really want to share the video anyway.

In trials conducted by the platform, the combination of the banner questioning the content and the prompt reminding viewers resulted in a 24% decrease in sharing of videos with potentially false content.

People come to TikTok to be creative, find community, and have fun, said Gina Hernandez, product manager in TikToks trust and safety team, in a blog post announcing the feature. Being authentic is valued by our community, and we take the responsibility of helping counter inauthentic, misleading, or false content to heart.

The banner and prompt will be particularly useful in the case of breaking news events, where its often difficult to immediately substantiate whether information being shared is true or false. By disincentivizing engagement, TikTok hopes to slow the spread of fake news around live news events.

Weve designed this feature to help our users be mindful about what they share, said Hernandez.

The feature is being introduced to accompany, not replace, TikToks current policies on misinformation. In the first half of 2020, TikTok removed around 1.25 million videos worldwide for issues of integrity and authenticity around 1.2% of all the videos they removed during that six months, and around 6,930 a day.

Those videos would still be removed for being false, Dexerto understands but on more borderline cases, where its difficult to ascertain objective fact in a situation, the new features could help reduce the speed of spread on the app.

The feature was developed by TikTok in conjunction with behavioural science experts Irrational Labs, and as well as reducing the shareability of content, it also decreased the number of likes questionable videos received by 7% in trials.

Labelling of content has been previously used by other tech-firms to combat misinformation, said Yevgeniy Golovchenko, who studies disinformation at the University of Copenhagen. Existing research from other platforms suggests that labels may indeed help curb the labelled stories.

The academic points out that a similar method has been previously deployed by Facebook on some of its content.

Golovchenko does, however, sound a note of caution about the feature. There is also research which points towards potential dangers of using this technique, he said. By labelling some content, a social media platform can potentially make other non-labelled content both false and true appear more reliable.

Research by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology showed the so-called implied truth effect was a risk.

When it comes such policies, regardless of whether they are implemented by TikTok, Instagram or other platforms, it is super important that the tech firms are transparent, he added. This should be done by providing researchers and journalists with accessible data on the labelling: What is labelled, when and why.

Some of those concerns may be headed off by the scale of TikToks moderation and fact-checking team, which is also being beefed up through a new partnership with Logically, one of the worlds biggest dedicated fact-checking organisations. They are supporting our efforts to determine whether content shared on the platform is false, misleading or misinformation, said Hernandez, who added: If fact checks confirm content to be false, well remove the video from our platform.

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TikTok adding new features to stop fake news and misinformation spreading - Dexerto

New Delhi: Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur spoke on the issue of fake news on DNA withZee News Editor in Chief Sudhir Chaudhary.

Thakur said the fake news issue raises a new cause of concern for the government and stated that strict legal action should be taken against people who spread false news.

He further spoke about a regulator that can raise questions to news channels, newspapers and even the digital platforms on the authenticity of the news that is being shared in the efforts to counter fake news.

Thakur pointed out that since the government respects an individual's the righ to freedom of expression so they cannot step in directly but if any leader uses the social media to spread fake/false news and does not even apologise then somebody has to set things straight. He spoke about setting an accountability for spreading fake news.

When asked if filing of FIRs is a solution to stop the spred of fake news? He replied, "In a democracy there has to be understanding and maturity and it should be there in every field and sector."

Meanwhile, FIRs have been registered against Congress MP Shashi Tharoor and six senior journalists over the violence during farmers' tractor rally on Republic Day in Delhi. It has beenalleged that "digital broadcast" and "social media posts" by these people were responsible for the violence during atractor rally by farmersin Delhi on January 26.

They have been booked under sedition, among other charges.

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DNA exclusive: Anurag Thakur`s first reaction on fake news - Zee News

If, just a few years ago, someone had stated in public that a global elite was kidnapping children and torturing them to harvest their blood to make an elixir of youth, they would have been directed to the nearest psychiatric ward. Yet according to a British poll, some 10% of US citizens saythey believe in at least some elements of this absurd theory known asQAnon.

The conspiracy theory has also been doing the rounds in Germany and, according to the Amadeu Antonio Foundation, which sets out to combat far-right ideologies and racism, it has already attracted some 150,000 supporters. This makes the German QAnon community the largest outside of the English-speaking realm.

A Konrad Adenauer Foundation study conducted from October 2019 to February 2020 found that around a third of Germans were open to conspiracy theories. Not counting children under 14, that's 24 million people. Other polls support this figure,and have found many links between QAnon supporters, COVID-19 deniers and right-wing extremists.

How can such blatant nonsense resonate in an enlightened world? After all, this is the 21st century, not the Middle Ages. The answer is: It's just all a mouse click away.Social networks are the perfect breeding ground for fake news and conspiracy theories.

A study conducted in Germany by Correctiv, which describes itself as a nonprofit investigativenewsroom, concluded that Facebook and YouTube were the platforms on which the most false information was spread, with messaging services such as Telegram and WhatsApp not far behind. Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technologyfound that it took six times longer to reach 1,500 people with real news than with fake news.

Social media platforms are in a predicament. On the one hand, they have tended to defend a very broad concept of free speech and tolerate content that amounts to fake news, profanity and insults. It was only in October 2020 that Facebook agreed to take down "content that denies or distorts the Holocaust." Holocaust denial has long been considered a crime in many countries.

On the other hand, these platformsare beginning to admit that the rapid spread of fake news and hatred facilitated by their platforms poses a danger as shown by the storming of the US Capitol last month.

In response to this wake-up call, some platforms are beginning to hold users to account and have blocked the accounts of prominent and less prominent people. Some also now flag fake news with a warning.

But this isn't enough. Facebook and the rest must also be made liable for content such as fake news and hate speech posted on their platforms. The European Commission has tried to address this with its Digital Services Act but faces the difficulty of navigating the thin line between curbing the spread of fake news and censorship.

Martin Muno

Not only that media competence must also be taught more in schools.Young people are more likely to gain their information from social media than traditional news outlets, which need to develop formats better suited to reaching the "YouTube generation."

These are urgent, crucial changes.Conspiracy theories must be resisted because they harbor the potential to destroy democracies, as witnessed not so long ago in Washington.

Last week, in her speech to the German Bundestag on International Holocaust Day, the activist and politician Marina Weisband made it clear: "Being Jewish in Germany means understanding that [the Holocaust] did happen, and that it could happen again. It means that anti-Semitism doesn't start when somebody shoots at a synagogue. That the Shoah did not begin with the gas chambers. It starts with conspiracy narratives."

This article has been adapted from German

Who was really behind the 9/11 terrorist attacks on New York? Was it the US government, meaning the Twin Towers were subject to a controlled explosion? Was it a Jewish conspiracy, with some claiming that Jews did not go to work in the World Trade Center that day? An exhibition titled "Conspiracy theories then and now" at the Dalheim Monastery shows how such beliefs emerge and are maintained.

In the so-called "Protocols of the Elders of Zion," 12 Jewish leaders allegedly layed out their plans to conquer the world in writing. In reality, the 1903 document (pictured here in the exhibition at the Dalheim Monastery) is a work of fiction by Sergej Nilus, an anti-Semitic Russian writer and publisher. The protocols are a central part of modern day anti-Semitic conspiracy theories.

The idea of a Jewish conspiracy was also a central part of Nazi ideology. The Nazis spread alleged revelations gleaned from the fake Protocols of the Elders of Zion for their own purposes, reprinting them in their weekly "Der Strmer" (The Attacker) propaganda newspaper.

People who believe in the barcode conspiracy probably have a special pen in their pockets when they approach a checkout counter to neutralize what they believe is negative energy radiating from the barcode. The barcode information supposedly aims to reduce the world population. Some companies even go so far as to print a line through the barcode to keep their customers happy.

Those seeking to explain major political events and revolutions have often invoked grand conspiracies. In the wake of the 1789 French Revolution, secret societies such as the Freemasons and Illuminati were seen as the all-powerful rabble-rousers. Pictured is an Illuminati Minerval class medal currently on show at the "Conspiracy Theory - Past and Present" exhibit that runs through March 22, 2030.

Author: Torsten Landsberg (db)

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Opinion: QAnon, conspiracy theories are no joke - DW (English)

Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting Prakash Javadekar on Monday gave his first reaction on fake news that has been doing the rounds after Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2021-22.

Speaking exclusively to DNA Zee News Editor-in-Chief Sudhir Chaudhary, Javadekar said that the Narendra Modi government is committed to farmers' empowerment and so it has introduced several schemes in the last few years. This year the Modi government to increase the income of the farmers so it is imposing agriculture cess.

However, the consumer will not have to pay more for any of these items. On the hike in petrol prices, he said that the cess will not affect people as it is being imposed after removing excise duty. The government is increasing farmers income.The burden will not be on people' pocket but on the government, stated Javadekar, adding that fake news was doing rounds on this.

Secondly, he added that another fake news that has been doing rounds was that the government is planning to sell LIC. He added that the ownership of LIC will remain with the government but a few shares will be floated in the market as Initial public offering (IPO). He added that news of the government giving up ownership is not right.

He also said that during the UPA-rule the inflation or price rise was in double digits every year but now it has been controlled.

Javadekar spoke on the fake news on the picture of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose at Rashtrapati Bhavan and that on farmer's death due to police firing. He said that some journalists tweeted that it was the picture of an actor and not that of Netaji, which is fake news, as even the actor in question confirmed that it was not his picture. The Union Minister said that it was wrong to spread such fake news and called it irresponsible to post such content without FactCheck. He also added that no farmer was killed in police firing.

Earlier, Javadekar hailed the Budget as 'forward-looking' and said it will give a major fillip to employment. Speaking to the media after the presentation of the budget by Sitharaman in Parliament, Javadekar commented that the coronavirus pandemic has hit economies across the world, but India is moving forward towards prosperity along with winning the battle against COVID-19.

"India has not only won the battle against COVID-19 but is also moving forward in its fight against poverty and towards prosperity," he said. Highlighting the massive budgetary boost in capital expenditure, the Minister said that the over Rs five lakh crore investment in infrastructure is a major initiative. "This will give a major fillip to employment," he added.

The budget will do justice with farmers, generate more employment opportunities and will be beneficial for all, the BJP leader said.

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DNA exclusive: Prakash Javadekar`s first reaction on fake news - Zee News

Andy Farrell has dismissed as fake news the queue of former Ireland internationals and pundits lining up to rubbish Wales' chances on Sunday.

Wales' difficulties under new boss Wayne Pivac saw them only beat Italy and Georgia in 2020 - in a year when they also lost twice to Ireland.

Both games were at the Aviva Stadium, however, and Ireland head coach Farrell is keen to talk up the Welsh threat ahead of the Principality Stadium clash in Cardiff.

Reacting to the confident words of the likes of Stephen Ferris and Donal Lenihan, Farrell said: "That's the way of the world, we are realistic that's what happens.

"I think between the two camps we know the truth. We know it is going to be a war of attrition at the weekend.

"We haven't won in Cardiff since 2013, which says a lot. We are expecting Wales to be 100% at their best.

"We have played them at their best before and come unstuck so we have prepared accordingly.

"Listen, it doesn't really matter what goes on in the papers or the news in the coming days, the game will still be the same.

"Both teams will try and get in the ascendancy and a foothold in the game.

"Physically, set piece...once the whistle goes the game is just the same. We expect a tough old battle."

So the claim that the Welsh are past it in this post-Warren Gatland era?

I dont believe that for one second," declared Farrell. "Our boys are very familiar with everyone on the Welsh squad because they play against them all the time.

"Some are good friends and we know what top performers they can be when they come under pressure. This is the start of a new competition and theyll want to right some wrongs.

Theyre an experienced side that has been in good positions before and difficult positions before.

"I suppose the slate is wiped clean at the start of a competition and this is a huge game for both teams."

Farrell has made four changes from the side that beat Scotland in Ireland's final Autumn Nations Cup clash in December.

James Lowe, Tadhg Beirne, Josh van der Flier and Garry Ringrose all return after injury, with Lowe, who hasn't played since suffering a groin injury in November, the most surprising call.

Not really, not in our eyes," Farrell said. "Hes a great player thats right for this game.

"Hes been in great form. Its been seamless him getting back into action like most of the other lads.

"In his position, Jordan (Larmour) hasnt played much games either. Andrew Conway in the same boat.

"Theyve all come in fit and raring to go and up to speed on where we need to be.

"When you select a side obviously first and foremost you want the right balance for the side and I think you can agree its a strong team, a strong 23 and one thats raring to go at the start of a new competition."

There are plenty of Irish players like Lowe who have had very little in the way of top-level competition over the last few weeks.

Most teams are in that predicament as well," said Farrell.

"We asked the boys to make sure at the end of the autumn that, come the Six Nations, they were fit and healthy and raring to go and to perform at the top level, whats needed to compete with the best of the Six Nations.

"And we like what we have seen from all of the squad, really."

Reacting to the Josh Adams controversy after the dangerous winger breached Welsh Covid protocols by attending a family event last weekend, Farrell said he had no worries about the rest of the home side being healthy.

"All teams are getting tested twice a week, I suppose you can't get more stringent than that," he said.

"It is something that we spoke about when we first came into camp and it is something we have spoken about since because obviously we want to make sure that does not happen in our group.

"Everyone is keeping a stringent eye on protocols and it is something we are doing pretty well and did do pretty well during the autumn."

Wales, as expected, have gone with George North at no 13 in the absence of Jonathan Davies, record-breaking caps holder and skipper Alun Wyn Jones returns to the line-up and veteran Dan Lydiate has returned to a vastly experienced back row.

"It was expressed in the press so we were aware of it anyway," Farrell remarked.

"George North at 13 is something they have done before and Alun Wyn comes straight back into the side, I am sure he will add an advantage there to the feeling of the group.

"Lydiate coming back in will add new energy to the group. We expect them to be strong anyway but that side is a strong one."

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Andy Farrell dismisses predictions of Ireland canter in Cardiff as fake news - Irish Mirror

More than 2000 primary and secondary students across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight are taking part in a number of free sessions designed to help children and young people learn how to spot fake news online.

The sessions have been organised by the Cyber Ambassador Scheme run by the Police and Crime Commissioners team as part of this years national Safer Internet Day on 9th February.

Online escape roomPrimary/Junior school students are taking part in a live online escape room where they will be tasked with unlocking codes to fight against fake news, and secondary/college students are taking part in a virtual webinar with interactive polls and quizzes.

At both events students will be able to get expert insights and advice from colleagues from the University of Portsmouth Cyber Crime Clinic.

Safer Internet Day Safer Internet Day is organised by the UK Safer Internet Centre. This years theme is exploring factual accuracy in the online world, looking at how users can separate fact from fiction.

The Cyber Ambassador events will be looking at false information, targeted advertising and influencer content, and focus on equipping young people with the skills that they need to spot inaccurate content.

Develop skills to be able to navigate complex online worldJames Payne, Chief Executive of the Police and Crime Commissioners office, said,

Living through a pandemic as a child means life is increasingly playing out online, including lessons as well as social interactions with friends on social media or gaming platforms.

Children have to make decisions at all times about who and what to trust online, and are being confronted with content that may not be all that it seems.

It is therefore important that they develop the skills they need to be able to navigate the complex online world and our Cyber Ambassador Scheme helps them do exactly that.

Free peer-to-peer cyber safety educationThe Cyber Ambassador Scheme provides free peer-to-peer cyber safety education and support to thousands of young people across the Hampshire and IOW policing area. Continuing to grow in reach and recognition, the scheme is now working in partnership with the University of Portsmouth Cyber Crime Clinic, Amazon Web Services, the Cyber HubTrust, CEOP ambassadors and CISCONetworking Academy.

These collaborations will help to expand the scheme even further, bridging cyber safety and cyber security, and will provide Cyber Ambassadors with even more opportunities to increase their knowledge so that they can keep their peers safer online.

Helping everybody understandhowandwhythey need to stay safe online Michael Klonowski, CEO of the CyberHub Trust, explained,

The Trust works with children, students and adults, to facilitate learning and real world work experience, to develop skills, experience and qualifications in Cyber Security. This is all based on the importance of helping everybody understandhowandwhythey need to stay safe online.

We are pleased to be collaborating with the NCA and the Police and Crime Commissioners Cyber Ambassador Scheme.

With all sessions for Safer Internet Day being fully booked, the webinar for secondary schools will be made available onYouTube(search for Cyber Ambassadors). Any schools interested in similar webinars or dial-in sessions as part of their online learning provision can contact the Cyber Ambassador Scheme via[emailprotected].

News shared by the Police and Crime Commissioner, Michael Lane. Ed

Image: United Nations under CC BY 2.0

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Pupils will learn how to spot fake news on Safer Internet Day - On The Wight

For the second time this month, a section of Kashmirs Valley-based media is in the dock for circulating fake news. The last time, it was allegation of a fake encounter being driven by lure of reward money, which expectedly fell flat since everyone knows that army doesnt have any system of cash awards for anti-terrorist operations. Hence, those who carried this fake news obviously disregarded fundamentals of responsible reporting that requires publishing both sides of a story. So, its extremely difficult to accept that this fake report was an unintentional faux pas, but lets give the publishers benefit of doubt.

However, with yet another fake news report of an army unit coercing the management of a private school in Imamsahib area of Shopian in South Kashmir to celebrate Republic Day [RD] coming just days after the fabricated killing for cash lie was exposed, its evident that theres much more than what meets the eye, as Jamia Siraj-ul-Uloom, a religious institution that runs the school where alleged forced RD celebrations were held, has outrightly rubbished this news report. In a written statement, it has clarified that The news item appeared in news portal Kashmiriyat and Kashmir Walla regarding pressure for organising such events [RD celebrations] and the hand of security agencies is negated as being a totally baseless allegation.Infact, by going on to state that On 26th of January, celebration of Republic Day took place in the vicinity of an educational institution Jamia Siraj Ul Uloom at Imamsahib Shopian and that Local people, students and administration participated in the ceremony, the school management has mentioned public participation in this event- a fact that no media house in Kashmir has reported. So, as the function wasnt held in the school as reported but in its vicinity, in which local people had also participated, its obvious that the news report has been crafted with an ulterior motive.This incident assumes greater significance due to three reasons. Firstly, the concerned army unit and school management have lodged a FIR against publishers of this motivated news since it has clearly been published with malicious intent, thereby sending a clear signal that security forces would no longer remain silent spectators when falsely accused of wrongdoings by media through inaccurate or motivated reportage. Secondly, that locals are voluntarily participating in a national function unambiguously debunks claims of pro-Pakistan lobby regarding overwhelming anti-India public sentiments in Kashmir, and this may be the reason for not reporting the same. The last issue concerns a perceptible lack of professional integrity of accepting mistake, and instead, playing the clichd victim card. Whats even more disquieting is that instead of defending their version with facts, the concerned news portals have attempted to justify their inaccurate report by citing endorsements by certain media associations, journalists and even some unknown Twitterati. Without intending to cast aspersions on antecedents of any organisation or individual, a few comments which the news portals are using as crutches are mentioned below:DIGIPUB News India Foundation has been quoted as saying, We also condemn the FIRs against two news portals The Kashmiriyat and Kashmirwalla for reporting alleged pressure faced by a private school in Shopian, Jammu, and Kashmir, to celebrate Republic Day. Since the concerned school management has debunked this news report in writing, for DIGIPUB to condemn FIRs against two news portals makes no sense, because aggrieved parties have the constitutional right to seek legal remedy. Hence, in The editor of a Jammu based newspaper has been quoted saying that If the army felt this was baseless, they could have given a clarification. Surely, it would have been published. Stop criminalising journalism. The question to the learned editor is- since when has seeking legal protection against motivated acts aimed at defamation amount to criminalising journalism?A Kashmiri author and journalist, has supposedly said that Media fraternity in Kashmir is so frightened or so used to the remaining silent spectator that it does not utter a word when colleagues and organizations are silenced, intimidated, harassed and vilified, one by one Will this erudite person kindly demystify his paradoxical statement- because if media in Kashmir is actually being silenced, intimidated, harassed and vilified, then could it have ever dared to publish such a blatantly inaccurate report? Furthermore, does seeking legal redress for being demonised tantamount to being silenced, intimidated, harassed and vilified?Media in Kashmir has undoubtedly been facing grave threats ever since militancy erupted, but contrary to general belief, its not the establishment or security forces, but unidentified gunmen who are actually muzzling the press. Starting with murder of Doordarshan Director Lassa Kaul and Assistant Director of Information PN Handoo in 1990, faceless assassins have targeted several media persons, and Rising Kashmir founder and editor Shujaat Bukhari was their latest victim. Use of the unidentified gunmen phrase keeps media persons in Kashmir out of harms way, so lets not rock the boat by trying to reveal their identity-because as the wise have said, discretion is the better part of valour!

Email:----nileshkunwar.56@gmail.com

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Fake News and Kashmir Media - Brighter Kashmir

Analysis: the new act represents incremental progress, but it remains far from clear whether its provisions will improve anti-disinformation efforts

Disinformation has become even more amplified in the last year. Covid-19 has proven to be fertile breeding ground for lies, continuing into the 2021 with the vaccine roll out. In Ireland,digital lies circulated following the shooting of George Nkencho, while campaigns of disinformationfloodedlast year's US presidential election.

These events are symptomatic of a social media landscape that continually threatens democratic institutions. In December 2020, the European Union introduced the Digital Services Actto replace outdated rules for digital platforms with standards fit for the 21st century. While hailed by some as awatershed moment for big tech regulation, its role in curtailing digital disinformation remains ambiguous. While the act carries important signs of progress, it represents only an incremental step in the continuing battle between European institutions and anti-democratic actors who seek to influence elections.

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FromRT Radio 1's Ryan Tubridy Show, CNN's Kerryman Donie O'Sullivan onhow fake news and disinformation can be used to cause real harm

The act is the latest attempt by the European Union to regulate how "digital services" operate. The obsoleteE-Commerce Directivehas until now been the flagship European legal framework for regulating digital services in the single market. However, the communication landscape has been significantly altered since the introduction of the directive in 2000. Major platforms like Facebook, Twitterand YouTube were absent from the public sphere back then, but are now important conduits not just for commerce but also for democratic elections. Unsurprisingly, this prompted calls for reform.

Broadly, the act targets how technological platforms safeguard the rights of users and encourages greater transparency in how they operate. It introduces harmonised standards for tackling illegal content, and provides a basic framework to facilitate greater user knowledge into how content is moderated and distributed through algorithms.

Provisions of the act introduce mechanisms for "flagging" unlawful content, challenging content moderation decisions, and insulating against misuse and abuse of "very large online platforms." The act also provides researchers with limited access to data on how the largest platforms operate. Through these necessary developments, the act takes a step in the right direction by incorporating two crucial principles of transparency and accountability.

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FromRT Radio 1'sDrivetime, Orla Twomet fromthe Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland and Niamh Sweeney fromWhatsApp ontackling online disinformation during the Covid-19 pandemic

Less certain is how the act will insulate European democracy from digital disinformation. It is supposed to signify a transition from self-regulation to co-regulation but, inthe context of disinformation, the current self-regulation of platforms simply means that platforms like Facebook and Twitter effectively craft their own rules that determine how they tackle disinformation.

While there have technically been guidelines from the European Commission since 2018 through theCodes of Practice on Disinformation, large platforms have never been legally obliged to incorporate procedures from these guidelines. This lack of enforceability has led to implementation gaps in how different platforms safeguard against disinformation. As a form of co-regulation, the act allows the EU to set an essential framework through a legislative proposal with the platforms filling in details for how these will materialise.

An ongoing problem that the act will not resolve is the issue of harmful but not illegal content. The act focuses on how platforms curtail "illegal" content, and introduces "trusted flaggers" to notify platforms when such content is recognised. New transparency obligations require platforms to share data surrounding how they suspend those who disseminate "manifestly illegal content".

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FromRT Radio 1'sToday with Sean O'Rourke, CaroleCadwalladr from The Observer and US congressman David Cicilline on the spread of fake news and disinformation

Risk assessments that platforms carry out in accordance with the act primarily address how to avoid the misuse of services to disseminate illegal content. However, unlike many other forms of harmful content, disinformation is often not strictly illegal. While co-ordinated disinformation campaigns distort the democratic process, the false content disseminated is often not unlawful, and therefore can avoid the same legal scrutiny that is applied tochild pornography or materialinciting terrorism.

Because the act focuses heavily on illegal content, its main contribution to fighting disinformation is to beef up the existing guidelines under the current Codes of Practice, which the European Commission has pledged to update by Spring 2021. While this comes across as a type of self-regulation 2.0, promising developments are in the legislative pipeline through the European Democracy Action Plan. This includes planned legislation to improve transparency of sponsored political content.

It must also be acknowledged that proposed "risk management" procedures within the act demonstrate an awareness of "intentional manipulation" of services and "inauthentic use of automated exploitation" of networks. While encouraging, these stepsare piecemeal in the bigger picture.

Legislation alone cannot minimise disinformation and theproblem is not as simple as removing individual pieces of "bad" content. Modern disinformation, often not illegal, exists along nodes of a sophisticated and layered system of content distribution. Users as well as platforms shape this system. Sophisticated actors exploit existing social divisions, and weaponise platforms in dynamic and inventive ways. This is evident through WhatsApp's involvement in spreading Covid-19 misinformation in Irelandand widespreadlies on TikTok before the US presidential election.

The act is playing a game of catch-up with technology. What's fundamentally needed are legal frameworks that can both keep up with and anticipate technological changes. For disinformation, the act is not the holy grail, but hopefully lays regulatory scaffolding for more concrete progress.

The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RT

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How will the EU's new act deal with online lies and fake news? law - RTE.ie