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London, November 12 (IANS): A BBC study revealed that false information is spreading rapidly in India due to a "rising tide of nationalism" where right-wing networks are much more organized than those on the left,
Research has shown that in India, "the facts were less important to some than the emotional desire to reinforce national identity."
"There was also an overlap of fake sources on Twitter. and the support networks of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ", showed the results.
The research, commissioned by BBC World Service, was part of" Beyond Fake News ", a television, radio and digital series presented to users at the BBC: unprecedented access to their encrypted messaging applications in India, Kenya and Nigeria
In its bid to fight the threat of false information, the BBC announced the launch on November 12 of a project focused on media literacy around the world, debates in India and Kenya, hackathons exhibition loring technological solutions and a special programming season.
"In all three countries, mistrust of mainstream media has spurred people to disseminate information from alternative sources, without seeking to verify them, hoping to help spread the truth. story. People also had too much faith in their ability to spot false information, "the researchers noted.
What is worrisome is that research participants have made little attempt to question the original source of false messages , looking for alternative signs instead information was reliable.
"The widespread sharing of false rumors about WhatsApp has caused a wave of violence in India, people transmitting false messages about kidnappings to friends and their family by meaning the duty to protect their loved ones and their communities. said the report.
More than 30 people have already been killed in incidents involving lynching rumors on various social media platforms.
"We looked at one case in detail – the deaths of Nilotpal and Abhishek in Assam – while another journalist went to Mexico to see how the rumors of WhatsApp fueled similar violence," said BBC report.
To reach this conclusion, researchers spent hundreds of hours with 80 per participants in all three countries.About 16,000 Twitter accounts and 3,000 Facebook pages were badyzed
The "Beyond False Information" season will feature "Fake Me", a documentary revealing how far young people will go in pursuit of social media perfection. happened when WhatsApp turned an Indian village into a lynch.
"Poor standards for media education around the world and the ease with which malicious content can spread unchecked across digital platforms "That means that it has never been more necessary for trusted information providers to take proactive steps," Jamie Angus, director of BBC World Service, said in a statement.
"We put our money in the mouth and invested in concrete actions on the ground in India and Africa," added Angus.
Russia's misinformation campaign will also be commented, Facebook is exploiting the Philippines to spread false information and debate with the world's four biggest tech companies about the role they play in fighting the spreading false information, BBC said last week.
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