EDMO Training: “The ABC of Fact-checking” (11-12 May 2021)

Over the past several years, fact-checking—one of the key pillars of EDMO’s activities—has taken the front stage in the global fight against disinformation. With an increasingly large number of fact-checking organizations emerging across Europe and the world, fact-checkers can play a key role in the detection and analysis of disinformation campaigns and providing public information to raise awareness about disinformation.

EDMO’s first training module aims to introduce some of the key tools for fact-checking, while also setting the scene to the broader context of the role of fact-checkers in the European digital media ecosystem. The training will offer an insight into the techniques, opportunities, and challenges of fact-checking. Participants will be introduced to ways of optimizing the use of search engines, as well as tools and techniques fact-checkers use to cut through noise when analysing social media. The trainers will also cover the basics of visual investigation through reverse image search, the Invid-WeVerify toolbox, and engage participants with geolocation exercises.

What do fact-checkers do? How does fact-checking fit into the global fight against disinformation? What standards do they adhere to? What can we consider a credible source? What can we consider proof? What’s verifiable and what’s not?

Target audience: This training is specifically aimed at individuals with little to no knowledge of fact-checking, who have an interest in learning more about the field. That could include but is not limited to journalists, researchers, civil society, and policy-makers.

Trainers:
Sami Acef, Agence France-Presse
Rasmus Klein Nielsen, Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, University of Oxford
Nina Lamparski, Agence France-Presse
Grégoire Lemarchand, Agence France-Presse & EDMO Advisory Board
Giovanni Zagni, Pagella Politica & EDMO Executive Board

The first edition of the ABC of fact-checking training is limited to twenty participants, but further editions will be considered in case of high interest.

To participate, please register your details using this application form  by the updated deadline: May 6, 23:00 CEST. Participants will be selected with an effort made to ensure balanced representation across gender, national, sector, and institutional lines.

This training is part of a series of residential and online training modules organized by EDMO. For more information, visit https://edmo.eu/resources/training-programme/.