The EDMO Task Force on 2024 European Parliament Elections invites you to subscribe to its daily alert system on disinformation related to the 2024 European Elections and how to counter it. Your free subscription will automatically end after the elections. Click more to subscribe.
Until now, AI-generated disinformation content is still a small minority of the total detected disinformation in the EU, according to the monthly reports of the EDMO fact-checking network, but some relevant cases circulated in the past few weeks and months and were debunked by fact-checking organizations. Considering four categories of content – AI-generated images, audio, video and text – and looking at recent precedents (many of them listed in this report of the EDMO Taskforce on EU Elections and in the EDMO monthly briefs), what can reasonably be expected for the upcoming EU elections?
Join the 2024 EDMO Annual Conference on 13 and 14 May in Brussels. The programme will focus on 2024 EU elections, media literacy, AI (as a challenge and as a solution), access to online platforms’ data, the Code of Practice on Disinformation and the DSA. The event will convene media and policy practitioners and experts, representatives from the private sector, policymakers, academics, regulators, journalists, and members of civil society. The 2024 edition is in-person only and seats are limited. Register now!
The highlights of fact-checking of the EDMO Hubs can be found in an interactive map updated on a monthly basis. In March, the Hubs choose their best fact-checking items on disinformation targeting a wide range of topics, such as the climate, vaccines and health, immigration or EU policies.
Media Literacy Matters, a three-day conference on digital and media literacy in practice, took place from 26 February to 1 March 2024 within the framework of the Belgian Presidency of the EU Council, organised by Mediawijs, the Flemish Department of Culture, Youth, and Media, CSEM, Media and Learning Association, Porticus Foundation, and UAntwerpen – Treatpie and in cooperation with EDMOeu. Several members of the EDMOeu team, representatives from the EDMO Hubs, and members of the EDMO Advisory Council all spoke in conference sessions, joining more than 400 attendees in discussions about the status and future of the media literacy in Europe.
EDMO Working Group on Media Literacy Standards and Best Practices is delighted to share its draft checklist on media literacy standards and best practices. The list has been developed by the Working Group with input from the EDMO Hubs and other practitioners and experts during a consultation session in December 2023. The Working Group is keen to seek feedback from a wide range of practitioners, researchers, public bodies and other experts. Share your thoughts by 17 April.
The March edition of EDMO’s Media Literacy Monthly Digest highlights a range of engaging and informative resources to boost your media literacy skills. From AI image detection challenges like NORDIS-Faktabaari’s “AI-To: the photo challenge game” to online game series on misinformation by IDMO and critical thinking exercises with Slovakia’s “Factology Checker,” there’s a game for everyone. Educators and teachers can strengthen their knowledge with BENEDMO’s curated list of Dutch-language materials and HDMO’s accredited online training “InfoGrund in the online world,” while families can spark media conversations with the French podcast series “Médialogues en famille.” With this diverse toolkit, EDMO empowers everyone to become a more informed and critical media consumer.
New BELUX investigation: in February 2024, CitizenLab unveiled an information operation named “PAPERWALL”. This Chinese-originated influence operation has built a network of 123 dummy media outlets worldwide, with a strong presence in Europe. The exposed assets included a Belgian and a Luxembourg website.
New BECID investigation: LGBT+ issues are one of the most popular and persistent topics of disinformation. Most narratives about the traditional family, which supposedly is under attack, are also relevant in the Baltics. In Latvia, this time it resurfaced due to two legislative initiatives. Latvia was one of the last EU countries to adopt any sort of framework for civil partnership.
Have a look at the open calls of EMIF for Media and Information Literacy, research, and investigations on disinformation. Deadline 29 April 2024.
In February 2024, disinformation about farmers’ protests expands, boosting anti EU feelings and being exploited by Russian propaganda.
The Mediterranean Digital Media Observatory (MedDMO) Media Plurality Report is an annual publication that aims to present and assess the plurality and diversity of the news media ecosystem in the three countries covered: Cyprus, Greece and Malta. The report is the outcome of a comprehensive review, data collection, and analysis of resources focused on the plurality and diversity of the three different news media ecosystems. It is based on the annual Media Pluralism Monitor (MPM), International Press Institute, European Centre for Press, Media and Freedom and national/local reports, incorporating advice and suggestions from community members as well as data from various valuable sources and scientific publications.
A repository of all the fact-checking articles published by EDMO is now available. The table organizes the fact-checking content from the websites of the 14 EDMO national and regional hubs, and EDMO.eu itself, produced for EDMO by individual organizations, groups of organizations and/or by the EDMO fact-checking network, that counts over forty European fact-checking organizations and covers all the EU Member States, plus Norway.
EDMO has recently published new investigations on Russian disinformation in Africa, on disinformation techniques against migrants from Ukraine and the Global South, and on how misinformation and far-right groups sparked a riot in Dublin in November after the stabbing of three children at a school.
EDMO is organising a session on "Science vs. disinformation: recognizing, addressing and tackling fake news to foster science credibility and public awareness" within the European Geosciences Union General Assembly, taking place in Vienna from 14-19 April 2024. Submit your abstract by 10 January 2024.
The highlights of fact-checking of the EDMO Hubs can be found in an interactive map updated on a monthly basis. In November, the Hubs choose their best fact-checking items related to the Israel-Hamas conflict, EU policy, national elections and disinformation targeting migrants and Ukrainian refugees.
How do you handle doubt when faced with anxiety-inducing news? The new EDMO BELUX campaign, led by Mediawijs and Média Animation (NPO), offers practical tips for those questioning what they see in the media, bringing more certainty to their doubt. With the goal to enhance the skills of internet users and guide them through the abundance of news, (dis)information, and opinions online, the campaign is available in English, French, Dutch, and Luxembourgish.
The Digital Media Literacy in EDMO Round Table interview series continues. Conducted by the Media and Learning Association (MLA), interviews are published monthly to highlight the media literacy work of the 14 EDMO hubs in Europe. EDMO media literacy experts assess their current local state of play, share their experiences on the main faced challenges and present their ongoing and future media literacy activities. Read the latest interview with the Adria Digital Media Observatory (ADMO) covering Croatia and Slovenia.
The EDMO Task Force on 2024 European Parliament Elections published a report on disinformation narratives circulating during the 2023 elections in Europe. Ahead of next year’s EU Parliamentary elections, useful clues on what will happen during the next electoral campaign can be taken from what happened during this year’s votes. This report is based on over 900 fact-checking articles published in the context of eleven elections in ten different European countries, up to October 2023.
EDMO has established a dedicated Working Group with a goal to raise media literacy levels across Europe, by developing quality standards, guidelines and best practices that new and existing practitioners can consult to increase the effectiveness of their projects. This is crucial to EDMO’s wider mission, as raising media literacy levels increases the public’s resilience to online mis- and disinformation. The MLA4MedLit Conference took place on 15 December 2023 to provide an opportunity to discuss the work carried out so far on creating a draft set of Standards and Best Practices and to gather input from the wider Media Literacy community.
