The work of fact-checkers like Faktograf is extremely important in the fight against disinformation, because they represent a shield that protects citizens from dangerous disinformation, which has become sufficiently widespread and influential. But since it is not humanly possible to put an end to all disinformation, the question arises of how do organizations like Faktograf choose the topics they will investigate and expose. In order to answer that question, Gong published a research by Mate Brautović, a professor from the University of Dubrovnik, called "Fact-checking in Croatia: Topic Selection and Debunking Routines at Faktograf.hr".
By conducting an online focus group with four representatives of Faktograf.hr, the aim of the research was to identify Faktograf's practice of selecting topics for exposure, in order to prepare samples for further analysis.
The results showed that within Faktograf, the editor-in-chief has the leading say in the selection of disinformation to be exposed, and whose choice is based on the criteria of dissemination and capacity of disinformation, its seriousness and influence on the elections. They find disinformation using Facebook's tools and partner programs, primarily because they have no alternative for the same, while other platforms do not provide access to data, nor help organizations verify factual accuracy. At the same time, the uniqueness of Faktograf is that the topics for checking the factual accuracy are suggested by the users themselves.
Read the full report below:
