Good misinformation-combating practices shared and discussed in Cameroon

Good disinformation-combating practices shared and discussed in Cameroon

Related project

Talk Peace

In Yaoundé, a seminar on disinformation and fact-checking was held for journalists on 22 and 23 March 2023. The seminar was co-organised by CFI, the Cameroonian association ADISI-Cameroun, and the Euro-African platform Médias & Démocratie. A look back at this key moment for the Talk Peace project.

The situations in the Far North, where both Boko Haram and Islamic State are active, and in the English-speaking areas of North-West and South-West Cameroon, where the fighting has been escalating for more than four years, are making work more problematic for journalists who are vulnerable and who put their sources at risk.

Having undergone little training on "disinformation", some of these journalists sometimes pass on bogus news in good faith by reproducing completely unverified content that is published on social media and which comes from dubious sources. These journalists therefore play a part in spreading falsehoods that tarnish public discussions and stir up tensions.

One of the tools available to stop disinformation and hate speech from circulating and to mitigate the risks they pose to stability and social cohesion is to enhance what journalists know about good fact-checking practices.

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Presentation by Dr Sakah Bernard on the topic of disinformation and online regulations

 

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Olivier Piot (left), Raoul Mbog and Fabien Pont, journalist to Sud-Ouest(right); France.

 

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Evelyne Essomba, Head of Station at CRTV News based in Yaoundé, Cameroon, and Ali Abba, Director of Radio Salam FM based in Kousseri in the Far North Region of Cameroon.

 

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Presentation by Tse Nebangu, Programme Director for Ndefcam Radio based in North-West Cameroon

 

The aim of this seminar was to share and discuss good disinformation-combating practices in workshops and through presentations. The seminar brought together African and European journalists and editorial managers who encounter disinformation and the editorial managers at the media outlets receiving Talk Peace project support. The discussions held over both seminar days ultimately made it possible to map out the problems and to devise new approaches, potential solutions and an exchange network at African and European level.

 

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Peter Kum, experienced Cameroonian reporter based in Douala, Cameroon.

 

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Fadimatou Boubacary, journalist at Galaxie TV, Garoua, North Cameroon.

 

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Valdez Onanina, journalist and fact-checking specialist, Senegal.

 

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Bertrand Ayissi, Head of L'oeil du Sahel office, North Cameroon, and Ali Abba, Director of Radio Salam FM, Kousseri, Far North Region, Cameroon.

 

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Grace Tambe, programme producer at CBS FM, Buea, Southwest Region, Cameroon.

 

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Rodrigue Tongue, Programme Director at Canal2international, Douala, Cameroon.

 

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Désiré Ename, Publishing Director at Echo du Nord, Gabon.

 

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Beau Bernard Fonka, chief editor at CRTV News, Yaoundé, Cameroon.

 

This meeting was led by Paul-Joël Kamtchang, a Cameroonian journalist who specialises in open data and governance and is the secretary of ADISI-Cameroun, a "Talk Peace" project partner organisation, and Olivier Piot, a freelance reporter who founded the Franco-African "Médias & Démocratie" platform and has written several books about the Middle East and Africa.

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