Chronicle Editor
Mbulelo Mpofu, [email protected]
NATIONAL University of Science and Technology (NUST) in collaboration with Swedish media development organisation FoJo Media Institute, FactCheckZW Media Lab, and Centre for Innovation and Technology (CITE) is equipping media practitioners with fact-checking techniques to ensure the presentation of credible and quality news.
The two-day training held at Bulawayo Club on Wednesday and Thursday saw media practitioners taken through what fact-checking is and how to apply it in journalism.
Presenting at the training session, fact-checking and media literacy organisation, FactCheckZW Media Lab’s Lifaqane Nare said fact-checking is at the core of journalism to ensure the dissemination of factual news.
“We can’t be proper journalists without fact-checking. It is the bare minimum requirement if we are to feed our consumers with correct, credible, and accurate news. This helps in curbing misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation,” she said.
The second day saw CITE’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) expert Sean Ndlovu presenting on how AI can be used in newsrooms to aid the production workflow.
“Artificial Intelligence has always been with us one way or the other and can’t be ignored in the newsroom. We use it for news gathering, production and distribution and can be used to generate images, and, monitor social media.
“As media practitioners, we need to understand the editorial and ethical implications of AI to ensure proper use and avoiding algorithmic bias,” he said.
Lately, the surge in the use of AI programmes like Quillbot, ChatGPT, and, Grammarly has necessitated the training of media practitioners in its use.
CITE has an AI broadcaster, Alice and such inventions have proved to be a game changer in the media space. – @MbuleloMpofu
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