Dr Tope Ojeme, a lecturer at Baze University, Abuja, has urged Artificial Intelligence, AI, developers to create digital applications capable of detecting fake news and combating unethical media practices in Nigeria.
Mr Okeke made the remark in a statement issued on Wednesday in Port Harcourt by Joseph Obari, Registrar of the West Africa Broadcast Media Academy, WABMA.
The statement said that Ojeme spoke at the closing ceremony of the Second Quarter Courses of the WABMA in Abuja while presenting a paper.
Mr Ojeme, speaking on the theme,”Beyond debunking: Building a Culture of Media Integrity in Africa’s Next Century,” emphasised the urgent need to confront the rising tide of misinformation and disinformation in Africa.
According to him, the development of AI-driven digital tools would empower citizens to challenge fake news propagators and hold leaders accountable.
“We must empower African developers, engineers, and creators to build AI-powered fact-checking plugins for newsrooms, and blockchain-based archives to safeguard journalistic content from tampering.
“These tools will also help secure open-data platforms, enabling citizens to demand accountability from their leaders,” Mr Ojeme said.
He warned that unless decisive action was taken to stem the growing trend of disinformation, the continent risks being overwhelmed by dangerous myths and falsehoods that could eclipse truth and scientific facts.
According to him, we could soon find ourselves in a world where fake cures go viral; conspiracy theories infiltrate classrooms, and elections are manipulated by digital bots.
He added that it would gradually erode public trust, which had been the very foundation of any democratic society.
Mr Ojeme, who is also a media practitioner, argued that although technology had fuelled the proliferation of fake news, it equally held the potential to reinforce truth through well-structured algorithms.
He explained that such algorithms could be designed to prioritise the identification of verified information, detect fabrications, and expose distortions of facts.
He further warned that the rapid spread of fake news and the use of deepfake technology to manipulate video content posed serious risks to societies already grappling with numerous developmental challenges.
“This looming threat highlights the urgency of building systems of truth – ecosystems of integrity, legal frameworks to protect truth-telling journalists, and the establishment of ‘truth desks’ in media organisations.
“There is a pressing need to confront this challenge head-on.
“We are living in an age of noise, where the loudest microphone command attention, speed supersedes sense, and volume overwhelms value,” Mr Ojeme concluded.
Earlier, Dr Ken Okere, Rector of WABMA, remarked that the academy’s mission was beyond training media professionals as it instilled in them an understanding of the power and responsibility of media communication.
He presented certificates to participants who successfully completed the media and communication courses and awarded cash prizes to the top three entries in the DebunkIt Challenge.
Mr Okere, however, explained that the DebunkIt Challenge was organised to mark the 100th edition of the WABMA Fake News Debunker, which began in April 2022.
NAN
