MediaWise, the Poynter Institute’s media literacy initiative, is partnering with DataLEADS, a digital media and technology company, and its media literacy program, FactShala, to launch the first of its kind, ambassador-led educational video series in India, with support from the Google News Initiative.
The video series, developed with a micro-learning format in mind and catering to viewers’ busy schedules, will incorporate trusted local journalists as the voice of media literacy education. The videos are a component of the newly launched FactShala Ambassador Program.
“We’re excited to continue our work helping fight misinformation around the world,” said MediaWise director Alex Mahadevan. “And it’s particularly important as we continue to see the effects of falsehoods online spill out into the real world.”
The video series will be designed with the viewer in mind – offering practical skills and useful tools that people can employ to better sort fact from fiction online. Topics include research-backed techniques such as how to detect misleading data visualizations, how to verify manipulated images and deepfakes, how to employ critical thinking techniques through lateral reading, how to identify misinformation warning signs, how to have difficult conversations with friends and family about misinformation, and the Digital Inquiry Group’s (formerly Stanford History Education Group) three questions. The videos will be co-published on FactShala’s, The Quint’s, and MediaWise’s YouTube channels and social media platforms.
“We’re honored and excited to partner with the Poynter Institute to give people the tools and the confidence to engage with the modern media landscape. The launch of this project is a great step forward in accelerating the growth of media literacy in India,” said Syed Nazakat, Founder & CEO, DataLEADS. “Every Indian should have access to high quality and trustworthy information that equips them with competencies to think critically about the information they consume, create and share every day. We are proud to work with India’s leading thought leaders such as Ritu Kapur to foster media literacy for all.”
Joining the project is Kapur, managing director and founder of The Quint, a news and opinion website in India. She will serve as the English-language ambassador for both MediaWise and FactShala. Through her work in the news industry and being a catalyst for change, Kapur is no stranger to the media and information ecosystem. In addition to her work with The Quint, Kapur was a founding member of Network 18 in 1992 and pioneered The Citizen Journalist Show on IBN in the early 2000s, winning several awards. When Network 18 launched its English-language news channel, then known as CNN-IBN, she served as a features editor.
Ritu Kapur recording a video for the Ambassador Program. (Vijay Sadasivuni/DataLEADS)
“Amidst India’s rich diversity, the Ambassador Program focuses on nurturing a discerning generation, dedicated to ingraining the instinct of fact-checking, cultivating a society where separating truth from falsehood becomes second nature,” Kapur said. “Its mission is to shape a society that is well-informed and robust, paving the way for a more resilient future.”
Kapur currently serves on the Reuter’s Institute Advisory Board. In her role as a MediaWise ambassador, Kapur will walk viewers through skills and techniques they can use when navigating the information ecosystem.
“We are pleased to continue our partnership with industry experts and trusted journalism voices that are collaborating to find new ways to tackle the ever-evolving challenge of online misinformation, find sustainable ways to transfer critical thinking skills and scale the reach of media literacy efforts,” said Surabhi Malik, Google News Lab Lead in India. “Programs like FactShala Ambassador will go a long way to help users build resilience against online misinformation, help reduce its harms and is hence a step in the right direction.”
The MediaWise Ambassador program launched in 2019 with NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt as the inaugural ambassador. At that time, the mission was to empower Gen Z with media literacy skills.
Since that year, journalists worldwide have joined the effort to empower people of all ages, globally, with techniques to sort through the online noise. The program now includes ambassadors CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, former ABC Good Morning America anchor Joan Lunden, Telemundo’s José Diaz-Balart, PBS NewsHour’s Amna Nawaz, Washington Post’s Dave Jorgensen, PBS NewsHour’s Hari Sreenivasan, Newtral’s Ana Pastor, Thomson Reuters Foundation’s Openly’s Enrique Anarte Lazo and others who participate in MediaWise’s various projects and outreach to empower all with the skills to identify factual information.
This video series joins MediaWise’s growing international portfolio with media literacy partnerships and projects spanning 10 countries. The videos will launch in English, followed by Hindi and two additional languages in 2024. To learn more about the ambassador program in India, please visit https://factshala.com/ambassador-programme/.
The project is supported by the Google News Initiative in India.
About The Poynter Institute
The Poynter Institute is a global nonprofit working to address society’s most pressing issues by teaching journalists and journalism, covering the media and the complexities facing the industry, convening and community building, improving the capacity and sustainability of news organizations and fostering trust and reliability of information. The Institute is a gold standard in journalistic excellence and dedicated to the preservation and advancement of press freedom in democracies worldwide. Through Poynter, journalists, newsrooms, businesses, big tech corporations and citizens convene to find solutions that promote trust and transparency in news and stoke meaningful public discourse. The world’s top journalists and emerging media leaders rely on the Institute to learn new skills, adopt best practices, better serve audiences, scale operations and improve the quality of the universally shared information ecosystem.
The Craig Newmark Center for Ethics and Leadership, the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN), MediaWise and PolitiFact are all members of the Poynter organization.
Support for Poynter and our entities upholds the integrity of the free press and the U.S. First Amendment and builds public confidence in journalism and media — an essential for healthy democracies. Learn more at poynter.org.
About MediaWise
MediaWise is a social-first digital media literacy initiative of the nonprofit Poynter Institute. The program teaches people of all ages and backgrounds how to responsibly engage with online content in the age of information overload. MediaWise was created in 2018 to empower citizens to find trusted sources and make sense of the vast amount of information at their fingertips. MediaWise brings simple, yet effective, digital media literacy tools to people where they are — whether they’re on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, X (the platform formerly known as Twitter), TikTok, or in one of the 10 countries where MediaWise operates — and walk them through every step to determine what’s real and what’s not on the internet. Through MediaWise, everyone can do their part to reduce the spread of misinformation and elevate the facts.
Follow MediaWise on social media to learn how to debunk viral claims and be more critical consumers of online information. Explore programs and be part of the solution at poynter.org/mediawise.
About DataLEADS
DataLEADS is a digital media and technology company aimed to help people understand and engage with the world around them. DataLEADS’ work includes fact-checking initiatives, data analytics, media research, media and information literacy interventions, curriculum development, designing public policy interventions and creative development initiatives.
About FactShala
FactShala is a media and information literacy program run by DataLEADS with support from the Google News Initiative. The programme helps people from small cities and villages across India to critically assess online information and sift facts from misinformation. The vision is to empower communities around them with ethical approaches to information literacy and critical thinking skills.
