“Fake news” has proliferated within our ultra-connected societies. Sometimes, there is a risk that it might threaten democracy and destabilise international relations.
In North Kivu, in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, fighting the Ebola virus is primarily a fight against fake news. This epidemic has killed more than a thousand people since August 2018. However, patients refuse to seek treatment and medical teams are attacked. The idea has spread on social media that Ebola doesn’t exist or has been specifically created to decimate the population.
« When trust is lost, conspiracies thrive»
By investigating on the ground, France 24’s observers have found the origins of these rumours. “In this region where armed militias dominate, people are more afraid of violence than Ebola and no longer trust the authorities, particularly since the cancellation of elections in Beni and Butembo, officially because of the epidemic,” explains Loick Berrou from France 24. “And when trust is lost, conspiracies thrive.” The French international news channel has created a “fact checking” system (6,000 “observers” around the world) to track and to debunk fake news, thereby ensuring that information is “authenticated, honest, balanced and independent”.
“The manipulation of information is not a new phenomenon,” says Marie-Christine Saragosse, president and director general of France Médias Monde (France 24, RFI and MCD). “What’s new is the speed with which fake news is shared on social media. Fake news is six times more viral than real news.” This is because it is often simpler to understand and more dramatic. This is because it’s shared or recommended by a community, a phenomenon which is called “cognitive bias”.
A war for influence and cyber attacks
Fake news can be a hoax or based on a mistake or a lack of understanding. “During the Notre Dame fire, African social media accounts mentioned evil statues,” Marie-Christine Saragosse continues. This can have significant consequences. “In the DRC, women were violently attacked after a rumour that trousers had been banned.” But fake news can also result from a real programme of propaganda or destabilisation. “Struggles for influence, information warfare, cyber attacks: the control of information is a strategic focus for states,” confirms Emmanuel Dupuy, president of the Institut Prospective et Sécurité en Europe. “China is investing in data centres in Africa and is at the gateway of communication cables (Kenya, Djibouti, the Gulf of Guinea).”
New Asian GAFA
“Since the US security agency’s spying scandal, which involved every internet giant, we’ve been aware that the internet is a major issue in terms of data control,” says Catherine Morin-Desailly, chair of the French Senate’s Committee on Culture and Education. “Yet the digital world is dominated by a few oligopolies – GAFA – which have colonised us. Didn’t Google co-founder Larry Page say that he wanted to organise the world’s information?” Tomorrow, domination will also come from the East.“Tencent, Baidu, Alibaba, Xiaomi: remember the names of these Asian GAFA who will be tomorrow’s internet giants,” Emmanuel Dupuy concludes.
