Media Literacy: Workshop to combat disinformation opens in Nay Pyi Taw

Aiming to counter fake news and disinformation, a workshop on media literacy to address disinformation opened at the Horizon Hotel in Nay Pyi Taw on Wednesday.

The workshop was jointly organized by the Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (AIBD) and Myanma Radio and Television under the Ministry of Information.

The opening ceremony of the workshop was attended by Union Minister for Information U Maung Maung Ohn. The ceremony commenced with the screening of video clip on the role of State Media in Nation Building Endeavours.

Then, the Union Minister made an opening speech, emphasizing that media literacy is an essential mechanism in combating fake news in the face of the digital age. In Myanmar, with the widespread usage of smartphones, the risk of fake news has been increasing since around 2011.

Most of the youth have fewer verification skills when it comes to fake and false news and have been victims of this disinformation. To address this issue, the Bali Declaration was issued and has been implemented, with this workshop being a part of this effort.

He highlighted that staff from the relevant departments, including the Ministry of Information, are taking part in the ASEAN Work Group on Combating Fake News and are actively participating in regional media digital literacy campaigns.

This was followed by an explanation of the workshop's purpose by AIBD Program Manager Ms. Monica Phang and greetings by Speaker Associate Professor Dr. Sara Chinnasamy.

The workshop will focus on topics including "Journalism Objectivity and Values in Content," "Targets of Lies, Rumors, and Hoaxes," "Methods or Tools to Identify Disinformation and Exercise Judgment," and "Journalists' Role in Changing the Public's Perception of Disinformation."

The workshop was attended by 50 trainees from relevant departments under the Ministry of Information, as well as staff from private media organizations and experts from the Myanmar Press Council. The workshop is scheduled to run for two days, from the 27th to the 28th of September.