Monrovia- Journalists of The Stage Media has participated in a two-day Africa Check, online fact-checking training to improve their quality of reporting.
The training aimed to address the spread of mis- and dis-information across Africa, strengthen and build the fact-checking skills of the target group in the lead-up to the elections.
Carina Van Wyk, head of Education and Training of Africa Check says it is important for journalist to engage in fact-checking before disseminating information to the public.
The training enables the Liberian journalists to uunderstand the different types of false information and the dangers of it spreading.
Participants at the course leaned how to Identify content that can be fact-checked or verified, Use practical steps and tools to debunk mis- and disinformation, Find accurate information and online data from credible sources, Identify “fake news” websites or false information on social media.
The training included journalists from the Gambia.
Some participates include, Nukanah Kollie of Bong County, Jemuel Davis of Nimba, Gloria Wleh, Trokon Wrepue, Abraham Mulbah, all The Stage Media.
Participants also learn how to verify the origin of pictures and videos using online fact-checking tools such as Google reverse image search, RevEye and Tineye.
Africa Check is a non-profit organization set up in 2012 to promote accuracy in public debate and the media in Africa while the Stage Media (TSM) is Liberia’s first fact-checking outlet that gears toward tackling disinformation and misinformation of contents.