New Delhi: The Press Trust of India has joined DataLEADS and Google-backed India ELection Fact-Checking Collective, Shakti, to aid early detection of online misinformation and deepfakes.
In a blogpost, Google said as part of its commitment to enable the news ecosystem to combat misinformation, it will support Shakti – India Election Fact-Checking Collective – a consortium of news publishers and fact checkers in India, working together to aid the early detection of online misinformation, including deepfakes.
PTI, India’s oldest and largest news agency, is part of Shakti. It has a dedicated fact-checking unit with dedicated fact-checkers who rely on PTI’s vast network of journalists, stringers and subject matter experts across domains to source and verify claims and publish fact-check investigations.
Commenting on the initiative, Vijay Joshi, CEO and Editor-in-Chief, PTI, said, “Since its inception in 1947, PTI has been committed to furthering the power of facts. Today, when technology is being misused to manipulate facts and spread misinformation, there is greater need for PTI to be on the frontlines in the war against fake news.”
Joining the India Election Fact-Checking Collective is but a natural step for India’s most trusted name in journalism, he said.
“PTI newsroom has been following a strict information verification process supported by the editorial guidelines since its beginning more than seven decades ago,” he said. “We are delighted that we will be working closely with renowned publishers and fact checkers of India to debunk election-related misinformation in the coming months.
The agency’s fact-checking unit sits within the editorial department of PTI.
“The India Election Fact-Checking Collective will play a crucial role in the coming months. Deepfakes — AI-powered, eerily realistic manipulated videos — could sway India’s massive electorate,” said Pratyush Ranjan, Head of Fact Check, Multimedia, Social Media and Digital Services, PTI.
India is the world’s 7th largest country, with about 2.4 per cent of the world’s land surface and 17 per cent of the world’s population, with most communicating in 22 major languages.
“Misinformation campaigns thrive in such a vast situation. Leading fact-checking players joining hands to debunk deepfakes will equip citizens with critical thinking skills. Their combined expertise has the potential to safeguard the election’s integrity and ensure informed decisions by all 96 crore voters in India,” he said.
DataLEADS is a New Delhi-based digital media and tech company with a worldwide focus on information ecosystem, data research, media literacy, fact-checking, health literacy, infodemic management, and digital transformation.
Syed Nazakat, founder and CEO of DataLEADS, said: “We are proud to work with India’s leading fact-checking organizations and news publishers to spearhead Shakti, especially at a time when deepfakes are being increasingly used for disinformation purposes. Amidst a complex information landscape, with the elections round the corner, the Collective is a crucial intervention towards building a robust fact-checking ecosystem to safeguard the democratic processes. We are honoured and excited to partner with Google News Initiative to build this important consortium.
Google in the blog post said as part of its commitment to enable the news ecosystem to combat misinformation, it will support Shakti, India Election Fact-Checking Collective, to aid the early detection of online misinformation, including deepfakes.
The search engine will work with fact checkers to create a common repository that news publishers can use to tackle the challenges of misinformation at scale.
India goes to polls in April/May to elect a new government.
“Starting today until the conclusion of the General Elections in India, the project will focus on connecting independent fact checkers and Indian language publishers, giving them a collaborative platform to share fact checks, research resources and alerts on elections-related viral misinformation and deepfakes, saving crucial time,” Google said.
Fact-checks in multiple Indian languages and formats, including videos, will be shared and amplified via partnering news publishers, ensuring they reach a wider set of language users and diverse audiences across the country.
