The emergence of disinformation through social networks
"The expansion of social networks and the Internet has greatly contributed to increasing the phenomenon of disinformation and mesinformation," says Sagaïdou Bilal. In his analysis, he adds that social networks have also heavily complicated the disinformation ecosystem in Mali. “There is an aspect that seems important to me to take into account: in Mali as elsewhere in Africa, orality is still relatively present. And, therefore, the Arab phone remains in use in the circulation of information. Even if information turns out to be correct, it may be distorted or reported in another form than that initial. "He points out.
Before continuing: "Many Facebook pages are qualified as" false media "and produce content notably audiovisual. They do not hesitate to cover events or decipher them in Bamanakan, one of the most spoken local languages, as well as press reviews in local languages in radios. Something that is not bad in itself, but the contents remain something to be desired for many. »»
However, information necessarily has an impact on the population, especially with the emergence of fake-news on the web. For his part, the journalist considers it: "There is still a long way to go, huge challenges to take up, both in terms of the local media ecosystem and at the population. The media space is made up of several actors: bloggers, journalists, animators, web-activists, experts, influencers, as well as other active internet users. It then becomes more and more difficult to distinguish information from the infirmation, information from opinion or commentary, expertise in opinion, advertising information. And I believe that one of the major challenges that arises in our media is to do more pedagogy by giving information: allowing the greatest number to have the necessary keys to better understand and identify the information given, as well as its challenges in terms of socio -political, geopolitical, and economic dynamics. »»
He also insists on the importance of disseminating this quality content (reports, analyzes, debates and surveys) so that "decision -makers and civil society organizations can be alerted or better informed on a subject of general interest".
Malian youth in the face of disinformation according to Sagaïdou Bilal
Many Malians are not aware of the magnitude that disinformation takes on the web. They consume and believe in the information they read without really analyzing it in detail and without taking the time to check their veracity. An alarm clock of the Malian youth is however in the process of taking place, although not very noticeable today: “Some young people are aware of it and even challenge Fact-Checkers and journalists to check information from them. Others are not aware of it and are even able to question remarkable journalistic work.
I note that some people (video, journalists, very followed Internet users ...) have no interest that there is less infox, that we make awareness and the fight against disinformation. They can even produce them for personal interests. Above all, it should be noted that with the current socio-political and security situation, Mali, like other countries in the Sahel, has become a field of "info-war". That is to say, the war of information and influence of public opinion, from the interior and from the outside (transposition of geopolitical issues or conflicts between Western countries and Russia, in the country). »»
Faced with this, Sagaïdou Bilal offers several solutions to respond to this lack of media education. Making the population of the disinformation phenomenon is aware of the population is essential for them to have arms to properly process the arrival of information. For this, he evokes certain virtuous media in the practice of fact-checking: Benbere, the milestone, Mikado FM (the radio of the UN mission in Mali, the Minusma) which are the pioneers in Mali. “These online media also raise awareness and training. Today, there are other initiatives like at Studio Tamani (a media project supported by the Hirondelle Foundation in Mali) and the Mali bloggers 'association (ABM, different from Doniblog - the Mali bloggers' community). »»
This work of pedagogy takes time and the community of journalists and Fact-Checker must arm with patience and perseverance to continue this work of awareness. The major media players have a big role to play in order to arouse interest in the reader for these subjects.
On the youth side, the Malian national education is faced with a major challenge that "requires investment in equipment and in teaching staff. Something that is far from being won in advance… ”. Regarding the role of the State in the fight against this phenomenon, the journalist of Tama Media believes that he must be able to "facilitate access to sources and information to citizens and men of the media".
Take a step back from information
Faced with news, it is essential to be able to step back. For Bilal Sagaïdou, a training philosopher, the task is quite natural. Animated by a high critical spirit, he does not hesitate to make it known that "practically doubt about everything in the sense that Socrates understand it in the dialogues of Plato, and Descartes in his" discourse of the method ", the Cartesian doubt". To doubt everything is undoubtedly the key to understanding the news and being able to verify information.
It is also difficult to make generalities regarding the types of false information that comes back repeatedly, as Sagaidou Bilal specifies: “Audios are very often disseminated or shared on the Whatsapp social network. But when it comes to authenticating them, they remain very difficult to check, including for Fact-Checkers. There are also the texts, publications on social networks and in the media, the official or attributed press releases, as well as the official or falsely attributed declarations. There is also more and more embezzlement of the media and deepfake . But what very often comes up in our discussions between practitioners of Fact-Checking is that we avoid talking about certain subjects or we avoid dealing with them as a safety or caution. »»
The complexity of information processing and its veracity represents an unprecedented challenge for the Fact-Checkers community but also for the whole of the Malian population increasingly exposed to disinformation. Youth, on the front line in the face of this phenomenon, has a major responsibility.
If you have missed the second part of the interview with Bilal Sagaïdou, you can find it right here: "Meeting with Bilal Sagaïdou: learn more in the Fact-Checking professions. »»
