Mozilla launches new effort to counter fake news

["Dave Farber" <farber () gmail com>]

> Begin forwarded message:
>
> From: Richard Forno <rforno () infowarrior org>
> Subject: Mozilla launches new effort to counter fake news
> Date: August 9, 2017 at 1:15:07 PM EDT
> To: Infowarrior List <infowarrior () attrition org>, Dave Farber <dave () farber net>
>
> Mozilla launches new effort to counter fake news
>
> By Joe Uchill - 08/09/17 12:50 PM EDT 10
>
> http://thehill.com/policy/cybersecurity/345906-mozilla-launches-new-program-to-counter-misinformation
>
> Mozilla, the creators of the popular Firefox web browser, are launching a new program to counter fake news stories.
>
> Fabricated news, made to mislead or turn a profit, is a growing problem in online communities. The U.S. intelligence 
> community assessed that Russia used social media to propagate misinformation campaigns throughout the 2016 
> presidential race. 
>
> "Misinformation devalues the open web," said Katharina Borchert, Mozilla chief innovation officer, on Wednesday, 
> announcing their new initiative. "We see this as a threat to the fabric of our society."
>
> The Mozilla Information Trust Initiative (MITI) will increase funding for research on misinformation, the first 
> findings to be released later this year. The company hopes to leverage Firefox's size and reach to get data about 
> news browsing habits.  
>
> MITI will also tailor products to amplify actual news over fake news, expand an effort to increase digital news 
> literacy and fund designers to work on software to provide on-the-fly visualizations of the problem.  
>
> "There will not be a quick technical fix," said Borchert, who emphasized the importance of tackling the issue from 
> multiple fronts.
>
> Fake news is more than just an issue of influencing mass numbers of people. After the election, some producers of 
> predominantly right-wing viral news stories acknowledged their work as hoaxes designed to attract advertising revenue.
>
> Mozilla is dedicating staff to MITI, including a new senior fellow and a research team under Borchert's purview.




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