Fake news, today's concern/ Bregu: Whoever tells the truth pays a price...

2023-04-29 15:08:00, Aktualitet CNA

Fake news, today's concern/ Bregu: Whoever tells the truth pays a price...

General Secretary of RCC, Majlinda Bregu

Disinformation is false information spread deliberately and often covertly with the aim of influencing public opinion or obscuring the truth. Fake news spreads six times faster than true news.

In this edition of "Talking Point", the Secretary General, Majlinda Bregu, gives her personal perspective on breaking down "bad news", deep fakes, the effects on the spread of fake news, etc.

Disinformation is a form of war. Seven out of 10 citizens of the Western Balkans believe that fake news is a problem for their democracies and 74% see it as a security threat. A majority, or 57%, are convinced that they can recognize fake news from real ones. Can you?

"There is a price to pay for telling the truth. Can we really do it? And more importantly, do we really want to hear it? The bad news about disinformation is that disinformation goes viral. This is not a metaphor. This is the reality. So we have something that worries us, so something has to be done, because the dealers of evil will stay in business as long as there are customers", says the General Secretary of the RCC.

How much are we willing to spend on "killing fake news" and what level of risk are we willing to accept? Are there examples in our region of institutions or think tanks that can define strategies to fight against "online" propaganda?

Are any government task forces being formed, new regulations being debated, are new initiatives being launched by technology companies? What about the spread of fake news by political parties? Do we take this war seriously? What about education, what role can I play?