Fake health news: How it can lead you to make dangerous decisions Kampala, Uganda | AGENCIES | Fake health news can do real harm. Here’s how to spot the difference between false stories and verified information. Sleeping with raw, sliced onions in your socks can release toxins from your …
Read More »EU countries split over copyright overhaul
Bruxelles, Belgium | AFP | Divisions between EU countries could delay or derail plans to overhaul copyright law, an ambition that has set up a battle pitting media firms against internet giants like Facebook and Google. The European Parliament, the European Council and the European Commission had planned to meet …
Read More »Trump campaign firm pleads guilty in Facebook data case
London, United Kingdom | AFP | A UK consultancy working on Donald Trump’s US election campaign pleaded guilty and was fined by a London court Wednesday over its refusal to release personal data it secretly hoovered off Facebook. The social media giant has admitted that Cambridge Analytica — a political …
Read More »Fact checking fibbing politicians works, study finds
Sydney, Australia | AFP | Researchers in Australia say that fact checking can reverse the views of even the most dyed-in-the-wool partisans, and over time could cause voters to shun an often-lying candidate. Scientists from the University of Western Australia, the United States and Britain found that Aussies did change …
Read More »Journalist arrested and ‘violently beaten’ in DR Congo: media NGO
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | A journalist was arrested and “violently beaten” in Democratic Republic of Congo on Thursday for covering a meeting of opposition presidential hopeful Martin Fayulu, a media rights group said. Rodrigue Ndakazieka, described as a “journalist-technician” with a Kwilu province radio station, in the west …
Read More »COMMENT: Assault on news media
These five mundane dangers confronting the profession could be more dangerous than the physical attacks COMMENT | ALEXANDRA BORCHARDT | The brutal torture and murder of the US-based Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi has focused attention on Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is widely believed to have ordered the killing. …
Read More »Facebook defends data sharing after new report on partner deals
Washington, United States | AFP | Facebook defended its data sharing practices Wednesday after a report revealing that certain partners of the social network had access to a range of personal information about users and their friends. The New York Times late Tuesday reported that some 150 companies — including …
Read More »At least 53 journalists killed on the job this year
New York, US | THE INDEPENDENT | At least 53 journalists were killed on the job this year, 34 of whom were targeted for murder in reprisal for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) found in its annual analysis. The numbers, which represent those killed between January 1 and …
Read More »Journalists become increasing ‘targets’ for killings: watchdog
Washington, United States | AFP | Journalists faced growing dangers of being targeted for killing for their work in 2018 even as the risks from war and conflict declined, a media watchdog said Wednesday. The Committee to Protect Journalists said 34 of the 53 journalists killed on duty this year …
Read More »Candidates’ private TV stations battle it out in Madagascar vote
Antananarivo, Madagascar | AFP | For months, they have bombarded voters with campaign slogans and speeches by “their” candidate, but on Tuesday, two fiercely-partisan media groups in Madagascar fell silent a day before the presidential run-off election. The “ceasefire” — in line with electoral law — is in stark contrast …
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