NEW DELHI — Fact-checking organization NewsMobile has been selected for Facebook’s coveted global accelerator challenge amongst the world’s top 15 fact-checkers.
The Facebook Journalism Project will launch this 10-week training program from early October. It is designed to help build engaged and loyal audiences.
The Accelerator Challenge by the social media platform will bring fact-checking organizations together to innovate, learn from experts and one another, and collaborate on new strategies to improve their business both on and off Facebook.
“Through the Covid-19 pandemic, NewsMobile is proud of the work that our team has done to help debunk Covid-19 and vaccine misinformation,” said Saurabh Shukla, Founder, and Editor-in-Chief of NewsMobile, in a statement.
“The accelerator program will help us learn skill sets to grow our fact-checking operations and will also help us make a bigger impact to stop the flow of misinformation. We are excited to work with the Facebook team and global trainers on this program, and we thank them for the opportunity.”
The Facebook Accelerator is a global business training program launched in 2018 to help local news publishers thrive and build sustainable businesses.
“In the fight against misinformation, we know that it’s important not only to reduce the spread of misleading content but also to elevate accurate information,” said Keren Goldshlager, News Integrity Partnerships Lead at Facebook.
“The Accelerator will enable us to support our independent fact-checking partners in this mission as they seek to reach wider audiences and connect deeply with their readers.”
Blue Engine Collaborative leads the Accelerator program, a consortium of mission-driven consultants and advisors focused on driving digital audience growth and revenue founded by former journalists.
“These fact-checking organizations and their work are critical to informing, shaping, and strengthening our societies and global community,” Griggs said.
“We are so excited to work with these teams on solutions that marshal their commitment to delivering truth to readers to broaden and deepen engagement with their journalism.”
The Facebook Journalism Project was launched on May 18.
“From today, journalists from countries including Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, India, every country on the African continent, and most countries in the Middle East will be able to access the free e-learning program” Facebook said in the announcement blog.
“The program curriculum was developed by a news agency and includes modules on digital news-gathering, news verification, and reporting, publishing on social media, wellness, and resilience training while reporting.”
“Facebook is committed to supporting the region’s news community and ensuring reporters can continue their important work to keep our communities informed,” Facebook said.
“The program is now available in the following languages: English, Thai, Sinhala, Indonesian, French and Arabic. More languages will be available in the coming months.”
(With inputs from ANI)
Edited by Saptak Datta and Praveen Pramod Tewari
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