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Misinformation Policy in Sub-Saharan Africa

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Misinformation Policy in Sub-Saharan Africa MISINFORMATION POLICY IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA From Laws and Regulations to Media Literacy CAMRI Policy Briefs and Reports 7 SERIES DESCRIPTION The CAMRI Policy Brief and Reports provides rigorous and evidence-based policy advice and policy analysis on a variety of media and communication related topics. In an age where the accelerated development of media and communications creates profound opportunities and challenges for society, politics and the economy, this series cuts through the noise and offers up-to-date knowledge and evidence grounded in original research in order to respond to these changes in all their complexity. By using Open Access and easy-to-read formats, this peer-reviewed series aims to make new research from the University of Westminster available to the public, to policymakers, practitioners, journalists, activists and scholars both nationally and internationally. camri.ac.uk/policy-observatory CAMRI Policy Briefs and Reports Series Editors: Professor Steven Barnett Professor Christian Fuchs Dr Anastasia Kavada Dr Maria Michalis THE ONLINE ADVERTISING TAX: A Digital Policy Innovation Christian Fuchs ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND THE INTERNET OF THINGS Mercedes Bunz and Laima Janciute THE GIG ECONOMY AND MENTAL HEALTH Sally Gross, Laima Janciute, George Musgrave PORTRAYING DISFIGUREMENT FAIRLY IN THE MEDIA Diana Garrisi, Laima Janciute, and Jacob Johanssen ACHIEVING VIABILITY FOR PUBLIC SERVICE MEDIA IN CHALLENGING SETTINGS Naomi Sakr (editor) FASHION MEDIA AND SUSTAINABILITY Anastasia Denisova MISINFORMATION POLICY IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA: From Laws and Regulations to Media Literacy Peter Cunliffe-Jones, Assane Diagne, Alan Finlay, Sahite Gaye, Wallace Gichunge, Chido Onumah, Cornia Pretorius and Anya Schiffrin CAMRI extended policy report (2018) THE ONLINE ADVERTISING TAX AS THE FOUNDATION OF A PUBLIC SERVICE INTERNET Christian Fuchs ABOUT CAMRI CAMRI (the Communication and Media Research Institute) at the University of Westminster is a world- leading centre of media and communication research. It is renowned for critical and international research that investigates the role of media, culture and communication(s) in society. CAMRI’s research is based on a broader purpose and vision for society: its work examines how the media and society interact and aims to contribute to progressive social change, equality, freedom, justice, and democracy. CAMRI takes a public interest and humanistic approach that seeks to promote participation, facilitate informed debate, and strengthen capabilities for critical thinking, complex problem solving and creativity. camri.ac.uk MISINFORMATION POLICY IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA From Laws and Regulations to Media Literacy Peter Cunliffe-Jones, Assane Diagne, Alan Finlay, Sahite Gaye, Wallace Gichunge, Chido Onumah, Cornia Pretorius and Anya Schiffrin A CAMRI POLICY REPORT Published by University of Westminster Press 115 New Cavendish Street London W1W 6UW www.uwestminsterpress.co.uk © Peter Cunliffe-Jones First published 2021 Cover: ketchup-productions.co.uk Print and digital versions typeset by Siliconchips Services Ltd. ISBN (PDF): 978-1-914386-05-3 ISBN (EPUB): 978-1-914386-06-0 ISBN (Kindle): 978-1-914386-07-7 DOI: https://doi.org/10.16997/book53 Series: CAMRI Policy Briefs and Reports ISSN 2752-6240 (Online) This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial- NoDeriva- tives 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons or send a letter to Creative Commons, 444 Castro Street, Suite 900, Mountain View, California, 94041, USA. This license allows for copying and distributing the work, providing author attri- bution is clearly stated, that you are not using the material for commercial purposes and that modified versions are not distributed. The full text of this book has been peer-reviewed to ensure high academic standards. For full review policies, see: http://www.uwestminsterpress.co.uk/site/publish/ Suggested citation: Cunliffe-Jones, P. et al. Misinformation Policy In Sub-Saharan Africa: From Laws and Regulations to Media Literacy. London: University of Westminster Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.16997/book53. License: CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 To read the free, open access version of this book online, visit https://doi.org/10.16997/book53 or scan this QR code with your mobile device: CONTENTS PART ONE: THE STATE OF MEDIA LITERACY IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA 2020 AND A THEORY OF MISINFORMATION LITERACY 5 PETER CUNLIFFE-JONES, SAHITE GAYE, WALLACE GICHUNGE, CHIDO ONUMAH, CORNIA PRETORIUS AND ANYA SCHIFFRIN PART TWO: BAD LAW – LEGAL AND REGULATORY RESPONSES TO MISINFORMATION IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA 2016–2020 99 PETER CUNLIFFE-JONES, ASSANE DIAGNE, ALAN FINLAY AND ANYA SCHIFFRIN PART ONE THE STATE OF MEDIA LITERACY IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA 2020 AND A THEORY OF MISINFORMATION LITERACY Peter Cunliffe-Jones, Sahite Gaye, Wallace Gichunge, Chido Onumah, Cornia Pretorius and Anya Schiffrin About this report 9 Researchers and declarations of interest 11 1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 15 2. THE TYPES, DRIVERS AND EFFECTS OF MISINFORMATION 19 2.1. Information disorder as a driver of misinformation 19 2.2. Eleven ways misinformation distorts our understanding 19 2.3. Who creates misinformation, where and on what topics 20 2.4. What drives misinformation and why we may believe and share it 20 2.5. Understanding the effects of misinformation may change our behaviour 21 3. DIFFERENT TYPES OF MEDIA LITERACY: DIFFERENT EFFECTS 23 3.1. Many forms of literacy demanded of young people 23 3.2. UNESCO’s promotion of Media and Information Literacy 23 3.3. Identifying media literacy sub-types to better understand effects 24 3.4. News literacy as knowledge and skills in five domains of news 25 3.5. Misinformation literacy – five domains of specialist knowledge and skills 25 3.6. Misinformation literacy behaviour – a sixth domain of knowledge required 26 How to cite this book chapter: Cunliffe-Jones, P. et al. 2021. The State of Media Literacy In Sub-Saharan Africa 2020 and a Theory of Misinformation Literacy, pp. 5–96, in Misinformation Policy In Sub-Saharan Africa: From Laws and Regulations to Media Literacy. London: University of Westminster Press. DOI: https:// doi.org/10.16997/book53.a. License: CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 4. MISINFORMATION LITERACY – THE SIX FIELDS OF KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS TO IDENTIFY AND DISMISS FALSE INFORMATION 27 4.1. Context: knowledge of the contexts – social, cultural, economic, political, informational and events – in which false and accurate information are produced 27 4.2. Creation: knowledge of the types of people and institutions found to create false and accurate information, their different motivations and the skills to identify those who produce specific information online 28 4.3. Content: knowledge of the difference between facts and opinions, the different ways information can mislead and the skills and practices to distinguish accurate and inaccurate information 28 4.4. Circulation: knowledge of the processes by which accurate and inaccurate information circulate and what drives people to share information 29 4.5. Consumption: knowledge of the reasons we as individuals may believe false or misleading information to be true 29 4.6. Consequences: knowledge of the different forms of actual and potential harm caused by believing and sharing false and misleading information 30 5. MEDIA LITERACY TEACHING AROUND THE WORLD 31 5.1. United States – a patchwork of approaches 31 5.2. Europe – some countries committed, but many weak spots 32 5.3. Latin America – digital skills, no focus on misinformation 32 5.4. India – limited teaching of media literacy, despite growing demand 32 5.5. East Asia and Southeast Asia – many governments wary of media literacy 33 5.6. Media literacy centres, library associations, fact-checking organisations 33 5.7. Traditional media and social media platforms 34 6. MEDIA LITERACY TEACHING IN SEVEN SUB-SAHARAN COUNTRIES 35 6.1. Media literacy is barely taught in seven countries, misinformation literacy taught in only one province 35 6.1.1. Cote d’Ivoire 36 6.1.2. Ghana 37 6.1.3. Kenya 38 6.1.4. Nigeria 39 6.1.5. Senegal 40 6.1.6. South Africa 41 6.1.7. Uganda 43 7. OBSTACLES TO TEACHING MISINFORMATION LITERACY IN SCHOOL 45 7.1. Bureaucratic challenges and a lack of political will 45 7.2. Limited time spent in school, poor teaching performance 46 7.3. Low literacy, numeracy rates complicate the challenge 47 8. EVIDENCE OF MEDIA AND MISINFORMATION LITERACY EFFECTS ON ‘REALISM’ 49 8.1. African governments and public recognise harm misinformation causes 49 8.2. In a complex field, meta-review suggests ‘positive effects’ on ‘realism’ 50 8.3. Focus on specific knowledge, skills appears to increase efficacy 50 8.4. Evidence of the effects of elements we identify as promoting misinformation literacy 51 9. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 53 9.1. Conclusions 54 9.1.1. Broad media literacy is not a ‘fake news’ antidote. Misinformation literacy requires specific knowledge and skills 54 9.1.2. Media literacy barely taught in seven sub-Saharan countries, elements of misinformation literacy in just one province 55 9.1.3. Many obstacles block misinformation literacy, starting with political will 55 9.1.4. Preliminary research suggests well-targeted teaching could curb harm 56 9.2. Recommendations 56 9.2.1. Governments, public figures and institutions 56 9.2.2. Education and curriculum authorities 57 9.2.3. Media leaders, fact-checkers, media literacy and library associations 57 9.2.4. Social media, messaging and search platforms 57 9.2.5. Researchers into education and misinformation 57 BIBLIOGRAPHY 59 APPENDIX 1 – METHODOLOGY AND DEFINITIONS OF KEY TERMS 67 1.1. Key premises of the research approach 67 1.2. Definitions of key terms used in the report 68 1.3. The choice of countries studied in the report 71 1.4. The choice of studies of media literacy effects 71 1.5. How we identified the teaching of elements of media and misinformation literacy in curricula 71 1.6.
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