Faith Imbu
February, 2024. 1:28pm
Faith Imbu, The Colonist Report Africa’s South-South correspondent, was one of forty journalists from Nigeria’s South-South and South East regions who benefited from the programme
The International Press Centre (IPC) began a two-day workshop in Port Harcourt on Wednesday to teach different techniques and tools for combating misinformation and disinformation.
The International Press Centre is Nigeria’s foremost media capacity development organisation, empowering journalists with the techniques and skills to investigate and report on issues.
The training was also designed to strengthen and broaden participants’ understanding of fair, accurate, ethical, and inclusive electoral reporting.
Participants were taught how to use various fact-checking tools, such as Google Reverse Image, Deep Trace, Tin Eye, and Open-Source Investigation Tools (OSINT), to verify trending information and combat information disorder.
Edetaen Ojo, Executive Director of the Media Rights Agenda, encourages journalists to use the Freedom of Information Act to hold authorities, both private and public entities, accountable for their statements, claims, and responsibilities.
Ojo went on to explain that journalists can use the FOI request to obtain historical records and analyse the accuracy of current claims and/or statements. “Such information can be used to educate the public, and correct false or misleading claims.”
The workshop, which is funded by the European Union is part of the activities under Component 4 (Support to Media) of the European Union Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EUSDGN II) project.
Lanre Arogundade, Executive Director of IPC, emphasises in his session titled “Pictures in Your Head, Good Journalism, and Why Fact-Checking/Verification Matters,” that misinformation causes panic in times of crisis and leads unsuspecting people to engage in harmful behaviour.
According to Arogundade, it is critical to locate and communicate with silent sources. He stated that it is the media’s responsibility to “talk to the silent majority or groups who may be silent in the news on an issue,” and that journalists frequently interview people with “polar” opposing views.
Dr. Titilayo Osuagwu, a senior lecturer at the University of Port-Harcourt stressed during her presentation how crucial it is to interview both men and women for news stories and to steer clear of gender discrimination.
Osuagwu stated that journalists should not use gender language when reporting stories. “Why not use chairlady instead of chairperson when referring to the female source?” She said, “Humankind should be used instead of mankind because it represents both sexes.”
A practical session where participants were split into groups and taught how to draft a FOI request and conduct a fact check using tools like Tin Eye and Google Reverse Image, among others, was the high point of the training.
Editing by Elfredah Kevin-Alerechi
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