Merging the best of human intelligence with the power of technology to build a fake-proof communication environment

Tackling disinformation to protect democratic values: Pomilio Blumm explores the ethical and practical challenges posed by fake news and radicalisation with EDMO chair Miguel Poiares Maduro.

A renewed importance of deontology for media and the adoption of clear ethical guidelines for creating algorithmic-based content are critical to stopping the spreading of fake news and its serious effects on democratic values.

A constant and solid monitoring of the technological and cognitive processes through which disinformation thrives is fundamental to winning this challenge, which is exactly the core component of the important mission and action carried out by EDMO, the European Digital Media Observatory.

In his dialogue with Pomilio Blumm, Miguel Poiares Maduro, chair of the executive board of EDMO, strongly underlines that today fighting disinformation and misinformation, and counteracting FIMI techniques in general, is more important than ever, especially for public bodies.

To ensure a healthy and fair information environment for all, the resilience of democratic systems must be increased, not only through appropriate technological and regulatory interventions but also by strengthening the media literacy of citizens and by restoring the role of traditional editors as trusted intermediaries.

Hence, the need to act as "fact-checkers" by vocation and to adopt an “ethics-by-design” approach is becoming a necessary condition, rather than an additional feature, for each actor involved in today’s communication system, at every level.