SAN FRANCISCO: Google on Thursday said it is pumping $6.5 million into fact-checkers and non-profits as it ramps up its battle against coronavirus misinformation.

Fact-checking organisations, which often operate on relatively small budgets, are seeing a surge in demand for their work as mistaken or maliciously false information about the pandemic spreads, according to Alexios Mantzarlis of the Google News Lab.

“Uncertainty and fear make us all more susceptible to inaccurate information, so we’re supporting fact-checkers as they address heightened demand for their work,” Mantzarlis said.

A Poynter Institute report last year on the state of fact-checking indicated that more than a fifth of fact-checking organisations operated with annual budgets of less than $20,000.

“We are supporting fact-checking projects around the world with a concentration on parts hardest hit by the pandemic,” said Mantzarlis. “This can be a noticeable infusion of additional support at a time of stress.”

The Google News Initiative is increasing its support for non-profit First Draft, which provides a resource hub, training and crisis simulations for journalists covering news during times of crisis, according to Mantzarlis.

Published in Dawn, April 3rd, 2020