00:01Distinguishing fact from fiction has become increasingly more difficult.
00:06Especially on social media where fake news spreads quickly.
00:10But there's a way to handle it.
00:14My name is Marvin Charles. I'm a journalist at News24.
00:17Come with me. I'll show you what I do.
00:20News24 is one of South Africa's biggest online newspapers.
00:25The News website was launched in 1998.
00:29As professional journalists, Marvin and his colleagues always follow ethical guidelines.
00:35The basic rules of journalism is quite simple.
00:38Being truthful, accurate and fair.
00:42This means that Marvin has to keep three things in mind.
00:47The first thing that I do is to check who sent the information, whether it's credible or not.
00:53I criss-cross sources constantly to see whether the information could be verified by them.
01:01Not checking with one source, but two sources or three sources.
01:05It's also useful asking what's in it for the source bringing this information.
01:11Why are you coming to me with this information? Why not go to the institution directly?
01:16We have to give people right of reply, checking facts constantly, and making sure that people are given a fair hearing when we write about them.
01:26Marvin and his colleagues regularly fact-check images or videos that are taken out of context.
01:33This photo, for example, recently spread in community WhatsApp groups alarming members.
01:41It's saying that parents need to fetch their children from this school because of gang members that stormed the school ground.
01:50We went straight to the Department of Education here in the Western Cape, who said that these are just rumors. It's not true.
01:57The Internet is a hotbed for fake news. To make verified information easier to access, Marvin regularly posts on News24's TikTok and Instagram accounts.
02:12As a passionate journalist, he makes this appeal.
02:16Influencers are not journalists. And that it's always best to check reliable news sources like News24, like other media outlets, maybe internationally as well, because we verify information and the truth and facts.
02:33Facts over fake news. Awareness is key.
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