Africa innovates Magazine -AI4DEV - Flipbook - Page 61
INNOVALAB (Guinea Bissau)
SAFE NEWS
CRUSADERS
COMBATING COVID-19 FAKE NEWS
N O B A S C H E C K E R – O N L I N E N E W S P L AT FO R M
Nobas Checker is a fact-checking website aimed at combating disinformation and
debunking fake news around the pandemic. The site was developed and is managed by
Innovalab, with the support of UNDP and UNIOGBIS. The platform brings together a
fact-checking community of doctors, journalists, and economists. Nobas means “News”
in the native Crioulo language.
There is a lot of information about the new Coronavirus, but
not all is correct, contend Nobas Checker organisers. And
drawing on the principle that false news ruins lives, promotes
hatred, harms people’s health and democracy, they created
www.nobaschecker.org, a platform which includes
independent verifiers and activists, who together find, expose
and fight fake news about COVID-19 to keep their communities informed with safe news.
The contentious false or misleading information (fake
news) comes in different forms: from viral postings on social
media, comments made by public figures, or even statements and stories made and published by some journalists.
It is vital that everyone receives clear
and factual information about
COVID-19. In situations like this, it
can cause unnecessary fear and –
most importantly – lead people to
ignore fundamental advice on
symptoms or how to avoid infections.
SHOWCASING AFRICAN INNOVATION 61
