A one-day training session, organized by Sarah Ayeku a Producer at TVC Communications and fellow of the Female Reporters Leadership Programme of the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ).
The training supported by TVC and WSCIJ, equipped broadcast journalists, fact-checkers, and student journalists with the skills to counter misinformation targeting women and girls. Also featured practical sessions on fact-checking tools, social media review, and video screening.
Speakers included Blessing Oladunjoye, who highlighted the harmful effects of disinformation on women, and David Ajikobi, who emphasized the importance of credibility and reputation in journalism.
While speaking on ‘Gender and Disinformation: How Fact-Checking Can Combat Misinformation Targeting Women’, Ms. Blessing Oladunjoye, Publisher of BONews Service and a FRLP fellow, explained that disinformation targeted against women often involve harassment, threats, and personal attacks, causing significant stress, anxiety, and mental health issues.
Oladunjoye also noted that disinformation often “reinforces harmful stereotypes and biases against women, leading to gender inequality and societal prejudices,” and that “it can tarnish a woman’s personal and professional reputation, leading to loss of credibility and career opportunities.”
The Lead Trainer and Nigeria Editor of Africa Check, David Ajikobi, who trained the participants on how to fact-check claims, emphasized the importance of maintaining high credibility and reputation in journalism.
Ajikobi said, “You might be a good journalist, but with one mistake, you lose your credibility.”
Ajikobi further provided tips for a successful fact-checking process and encouraged journalists to spread the word about fact-checking and make good use of the tools.
He took the participants through OSINT Essentials, a platform that collates different tools that can be used for fact checks, regarding the format of the claim.
Corroborating Ajikobi, Mr Kayode Oladehinde, Executive Editor at TVC, urged participants to prioritize building their reputation and integrity.. The training aimed to empower journalists to prevent the spread of misinformation and promote fact-based reporting.
As Sarah Ayeku emphasized, “If everyone in this room is a fact checker, fake reports from content creators will be drastically reduced.” The training was attended by postgraduate students, broadcast journalists, fact-checkers, and TVC staff and interns.”
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