Facebook has named a third fact-checking partner in Nigeria, Dubawa, to join its global network of organisations tackling fake news, Punchng report.
According to Facebook in a statement, Dubawa is certified by the non-partisan international fact-checking network, Poynter.
This announcement comes after Africa Check and AFP have been engaged in its third-party fact-checking programme in the country.
According to Facebook, the fact-checking initiative aims to improve the quality of news people find on its platform by helping to assess the accuracy of news and reduce the spread of misinformation.
The global content provider said it relied on feedback from the Facebook community and many other signals Facebook used to raise potentially false stories to fact checkers for review.
It added that local articles would be fact-checked alongside the verification of photos and videos, adding that whenever a fact-checking agency identified a story as fake, Facebook would show it lower in News Feed, significantly reducing its distribution.
“This new partnership with Dubawa further highlights our commitment in tackling misinformation and false news across Nigeria, and builds on the already important work that AFP and Africa Check have begun.
“We know that Third-Party Fact-Checking alone is not the solution, it is one of many initiatives and programmes we continue to invest in across the country to help to improve the quality of information people see on Facebook,” the Head of Public Policy for West and Central Africa, Adaora Ikenze, said.
