Journalists confront disinformation head-on

Yes, it’s gotten easier to create persuasive disinformation. And yes, it’s easier than ever before to spread lies that divide and hurt our societies.

But as I look ahead to 2024, I see a hopeful trend: More and more journalists are exposing and explaining disinformation narratives. And that means more people are in a position to see through them.

This is especially important next year, when 2.6 billion people go to the polls in 81 countries for elections.

In my position as president of the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ), I have the great privilege of working with journalists across the world, including in the U.S. Even a few years ago, disinformation was relegated to a niche beat — today, equipping yourself to uncover lies and the bad actors behind them is becoming an essential reporting skill. The huge demand for our Disarming Disinformation initiative, which is focused right now on electoral disinformation, is telling.

Journalists are getting smarter about how they do this work. More are employing tools (cue AI) to do greater data analysis, while also organizing collaborations that lead to greater impact (Factchequeado, co-founded by ICFJ Knight Fellow Laura Zommer, is a powerful model for this).

Of course, whether people actually see what journalists report on disinformation, and whether they believe what they see, is a massive challenge. Here, I would offer another observation: More and more news organizations are focused on building trust, working to be more transparent, inclusive, and fair.

Existing efforts to expose disinformation and build trust are not enough. But the fact that more funders and news organizations are centering them is promising. There is so much at stake, and despair at the magnitude of the problem can overwhelm us. All of us who care about preserving democratic values can help advance these vital efforts — and 2024 could not be a more important year to do it.