Countering an ‘infodemic’ amid a pandemic
As COVID-19 cases surged in Indonesia in November, Renanda Putri, 22, received a message on WhatsApp which claimed that drinking boiled garlic water could cure coronavirus. It included a video tutorial and mentioned that a doctor in China had used the remedy to successfully treat their patients. The message was forwarded to Renanda by her…, A grassroots effort , While misinformation has spread virally during the pandemic, the issue of fake news in Indonesia has been around for years says MAFINDO founder Harry Sufehmi. He started the organization in 2015 when hoaxes and calls for violence spiked on social media during the presidential elections a year earlier. At the heart of the issue, he explains, is…, Vaccinating against misinformation , While the Hoaks busting team publishes several articles a day, the rapid pace at which misinformation spreads means that hoaxes often outpace fact checks. According to the Indonesian Ministry of Communication and Information, at least five new hoaxes are identified every day on digital platforms, highlighting the need for more proactive messaging…
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