IEC's global conference focuses on potential pitfalls of social media
Experts were expected to address the influence of fake news on election integrity, amongst other things.
CAPE TOWN - The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) is on Wednesday hosting a global conference on the potential pitfalls of social media.
Experts were expected to address the influence of fake news on election integrity, amongst other things.
#SocialMedia The IEC and United Nations Development Programme is hosting a 3-day conference on “Safeguarding Electoral Integrity in the Digital Age - Strategies for Combating Digital Disinformation”. KB pic.twitter.com/FRPBGKBxFm
— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) March 3, 2020
Experts said micro-targeting was one of the ways that fake news manufacturers used to exploit ideological and cultural differences by narrowing their focus to specific groups and even individuals
The Institute for Security Studies’ Karen Allen said this targeting was often used to disseminate hate speech and drive discrimination.
“We've seen that in the 2016 US election campaign with the news about Russian attempts to influence the race that was particularly targeting African American voters,” Allen said.
Allen said South Africa was not spared as fake news pieces were distributed during last year’s general elections.
“My colleague Avani Singh, from ALT Advisory, has documented extensively disinformation campaigns in last year's presidential election causing confusion about where to vote for instance [and] allegations that voting stations have closed down,” she said.
IEC officials said the platform was not about government regulation, but geared towards harnessing the good uses of social media and highlighting pitfalls that should be managed.
#SocialMedia Karen Allen, Emerging Threats in Africa, addressing disinformation & social media. KB pic.twitter.com/6oEHcr1cQV
— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) March 3, 2020
