Fact-Checking Skills Deemed Vital
Journalists Urged to Combat AI Misinformation
- Malicious automated bots and artificial intelligence tools are generating fabricated deepfake media online
- Technical fact-checking and digital verification modules are training journalists against digital impersonation
- Responsible newsrooms must leverage advanced digital detection tools to safeguard democratic discourse effectively
Journalists must acquire advanced technical capabilities to detect algorithmic disinformation, automated rumors, and AI-generated synthetic media across online platforms.
State Minister for Information and Broadcasting Yasir Khan Chowdhury highlighted this during a certificate distribution ceremony on Saturday, September 12. The three-day training workshop on multimedia journalism, fact-checking, and artificial intelligence (AI) concluded in Hossainpur upazila, Kishoreganj.
"Journalists must report governmental flaws through verified technical metrics rather than manipulated digital propaganda," the State Minister said. He stressed that nationwide training is underway to build operational competencies in AI forensics, fact-checking, and tracking disinformation networks.
Chowdhury stated, "The objective is beyond issuing paper credentials. We aim to equip reporters against structured misinformation, automated impersonation, and digital defamation targeting public figures and women." He added that malicious actors use automated face-swapping algorithms to produce distorted media, discrediting verified professional journalism.
To upgrade technical standards, the ministry plans two-year master’s courses and specialized AI journalism certifications based on verified press club databases. Welfare Trust allocations are being expanded via the Finance Department.
The State Minister noted that technical training rollouts have launched across Mymensingh, Bogura, Feni, and peripheral Dhaka districts. He pledged sustained media freedom under Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, urging reporters to expose systemic challenges while preventing automated propaganda from undermining state institutions.
Press Institute Bangladesh Director General Faruk Wasif, Additional Superintendent of Police Mukit Sarker, Hossainpur Upazila Nirbahi Officer Reksona Khatun, Hossainpur Police Station OC Muhammad Rashedul Islam, and local journalists attended the session.
//DBTech/SPPR/SME/MIST//
