LAUNCH OF 'D-FACTO'

A group of French researchers, journalists and specialists in developing the capacities of individuals to use the media and communication has nnounced the launch of the “De Facto” platform to fight disinformation, the French contribution to a project that on a European scale.

The initiative is the result of efforts by Agence France-Presse, the Sciences Po Institute in Paris (Medialab), the Center for Education and Media Linkage (Clemi) and the collaborative Xwiki SAS platform in response to a call for projects from the European Commission.

The aim of the call is to set up 8 projects that will bring together the expertise of academics, experts in developing the capacity of individuals to use media and communication appropriately, and journalists to fight disinformation in 15 countries.

The “D-Facto” platform, like its European neighbors, is “independent of institutions, government and the initiatives that government can take against media disinformation.

AFP  will coordinate the publication of fact checks, not only from the editors, but also from other editorial boards” such as “Liberation”, “Radio France” “20 Minutes” and the group “Les Surligneurs ”.

Educational content will be published on the platform’s website explaining the methods of information fraud and verification. On the platform, educators and media will find more specialized tools and access to open source software.

European Hubs

1. CEDMO (Central European Digital Media Observatory (CEDMO) will be located at the Faculty of Social Sciences) in Prague . CEDMO consortium, led by Charles University – CU (CZE), involves eight partners and three subcontractors. From the consortium members, Athens Technology Center – ATC (GRE) will be responsible for the development of the technical infrastructure. Immediate disinformation responses and daily fact checking will be delivered by seasoned professionals of AFP (CZE, POL, SVK, EN), Demagog.cz (CZE) and several subcontractors. Researchers from KInIT (SVK) and Czech Technical University in Prague – CTU (CZE), who have extensive experience with artificial intelligence will develop methods and tools to improve and speed up fact checking. Other consortium members will research the impact of misinformation on the society: CU (CZE), University of Ss. Cyril and Methodius in Trnava- UCM (SVK), SWPS (POL) and future subcontractors. Countries Covered: Slovakia, Czech Republic and Poland
2. EDMO BELUX :EDMO BELUX is a cross-community, multilingual collaboration between Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Université Saint-Louis-Bruxelles, Mediawijs, EU Disinfolab, Agence France-Presse, RTL Luxembourg and Athens Technology Center. Countries covered: Belgium and Luxembourg.
3. EDMO BENL (Stichting Nederlands Instituut voor Beeld en Geluid) will also provide services to the Dutch-speaking disinformation research community in Belgium. Hence, there will be a close EDMO BENL – EDMO BELUX collaboration. Exchange of knowledge and practices among project partners and the EDMO network is paramount to effectively and efficiently counter emerging disinformation campaigns in Belgium, Luxembourg and the European Union at large. Country covered: The Netherlands
4. Ireland Hub: Dublin City University. Country covered Ireland
5. IBERIFIER: Universidad de Navarra. Countries covered: Spain and Portugal
6. NORDIS- Nordic Observatotry for Digital Media and Information DISorders: Aarhus Universiteit. Countries covered: Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland
7. DE FACTO Observatory of Information: Sciences Po. Country covered: France

8. Italian Digital Media Observatory: Luiss Libera Universita Internazionalle degli Studi Sociali Guido Carli. Country covered: Italy

   Participants Summary

   1. Aarhus Universiteit (Denmark)
   2. Agence France-Presse (France)
   3. Athens Technology Center (ATC) (Greece)
   4. Center for Education and Media Linkage (Clemi) (France)
   5. Central European Digital Media Observatory (CEDMO) (Czech Republic)
   6. Charles University, (CU) Faculty of Social Sciences (Prague)
   7. Czech Technical University (CTU) (Prague)
   8. Demagog.cz (Czech Republic)
   9. Dublin City University (Ireland)
   10. EdmoBelux (Belgium, Luxembourg)
   11. EdmoBenl (Netherlands)
   12. EU Disinfolab Iberifier (Spain)
   13. Italian Digital Media Observatory (Italy)
   14. Kempelen Institute of Intelligent Technologies (Slovakia)
   15. Luiss Libera Internazionalle degli Studi Sociali Guido Carli (Italy)
   16. Mediawijs Nordic Observatory for Digital Media and Information DISorders (Denmark)
   17. RTL Luxembourg
   18. Sciences Po Media Lab and School of Journalism (France)
   19. SWPS (Poland)
   20. Universidad de Navarra (Spain)
   21. Université Saint-Louis Bruxelles
   22. University of Ss. Cyril and Methodius in Trnava-(UCM) (Slovakia)
   23. Vrije Universiteit Brussel
   24. Xwiki SAS platform