The U.S. Consulate General Kolkata, in partnership with Consumer Unity & Trust Society (CUTS) and with the support of the Dimapur Press Club hosted a workshop on media literacy for journalists in Dimapur.
Speaking at the inaugural session of the workshop, director of the American Center, US Consulate General Kolkata Adrian Pratt emphasised that “the digital age has enabled access to diverse sources of knowledge at a mouse click. However, it has also created unprecedented challenges and structural changes in the news industry.”
He also highlighted on the imminent arrival of artificial intelligence (AI) and its potential repercussions on newsrooms globally, cautioning against its negative effects in conjunction with the spread of misinformation. He mentioned how AI possesses the ability to generate fabricated content with unwavering certainty, thereby intensifying the challenges faced by newsrooms.
Deputy head of CUTS International-Calcutta Resource Centre, Sucharita Bhattacharjee spoke on the overarching theme of the workshop and mentioned that the workshop aims at providing hands on training to the journalists to fact check. She also underlined the need for creating an informal platform for the media professionals to identify and combat misinformation, and fake news. She further added that these workshops are being organized as part of the suggestions received from the journalists from the Indo-Pacific countries at the international media workshop hosted in Kolkata during August 11-12, 2022 at the American Center, Kolkata. Recalling her experience and key learnings from the Kolkata workshop organised by CUTS International with the support of US Consulate Kolkata, and in collaboration with South Asian Women in Media (SAWM) and East West Center (EWC), director news and administration, Morung Express, Akangjungla highlighted how meeting journalists from different parts of the world helped her to adopt a fresh mindset, compelling her to craft stories that resonated with a broader audience. Divya Chandra, producer, workshop and training, Boom Live, was the main resource person for the workshop. She spoke on how to differentiate between misinformation and disinformation; how to debunk online misinformation and disinformation using tools and observation skills; increasing use of artificial intelligence (AI) in misinformation space; and how to write a fact-check articles.
The workshop was attended by over 30 Dimapur and Kohima based journalists.
