The term 'fake news' might have started with a former US President shouting 'fake news' at
every opportunity, but it's something that makes this kind of conversation much more accessible.
The basic meaning of 'fake news' is information that's false or fabricated
and that is being passed off as news, and thus as real.
It is something that can potentially affect us all and the way we live our lives.
Disinformation is false information which has been created
on purpose, and so it's often a type of propaganda. Misinformation is where the false information
is more accidental, but it's still false and so it can still be very disruptive.
To understand the implications that 'fake news' has in different places, one has to have an
understanding of the media environment in that place, and particularly the vulnerabilities that
that environment might have.
Wales is more susceptible to mis and disinformation.
Partly because if people in Wales can't get good quality news about Wales from Welsh media
sources, where are they getting their information from? And largely that's either UK sources who
don't really understand Wales or reflect Wales back to people here, or it's from social media.
One of the important issues for misinformation and disinformation in the Welsh context
is the whole concept of devolution. Devolution has been the process of shifting some
powers away from the UK Parliament, based in Westminster, to parliaments in Wales, Scotland
and Northern Ireland.
'That's Devolved' is a Twitter account that was set up, aiming at really
correcting the media when it gets devolution wrong, and informing people so
they understand the difference that it makes and hopefully making a change in that way.
So reporting on the Senedd is limited to four or five journalists, and while they will get some of
the information out there, you'll never get the same level of scrutiny.
To compare the UK-wide media with the Welsh specific media is a bit like comparing apples and pears.
So Wales is, especially devolution, it's very new - and Fleet Street for instance
has had centuries in which to develop, not just readerships but also, essentially spheres of
influence and areas that they would cover. So in Wales we've had two decades in order to do that.
There has been a decline in newspaper sales within Wales, as there has everywhere, but this has been
offset with the growth of online media. At the start of the pandemic, Mark Drakeford wasn't just
some guy you occasionally saw but didn't really know who he was, he was a guy who could decide
whether you could visit your mother in a care home.
We will continue to make decisions which are right for Wales using information and
expert advice about how coronavirus is circulating here, to keep us all safe.
In the last 16 months, we have seen a huge growth in an appetite for
Welsh specific media because it's finally relevant to people's everyday life.
The Covid pandemic is a very good example, because you really
want reliable information, so that people know what they can, what they should be doing. And it can have
very serious consequences because this is to do with issues, of ultimately, life and death.
In May 2020, it looked like the UK Government were going to go their own way for England. Boris Johnson said
you can now drive as far as you want.
We're taking the first careful steps to modify our measures.
And from this Wednesday, we want to encourage people to take more and even unlimited amounts of outdoor exercise.
You can sit in the sun in your local park, you can drive to other destinations.
He addressed the British public saying you can travel as far as you want.
Immediately there had to be a response from the Welsh Government and Wales police chiefs
saying you cannot travel to Wales still, this isn't allowed.
Noswaith dda. This evening, the Prime Minister has set out the minor changes which are proposed to the lockdown
rules in England over the next three weeks.
Our advice has not changed in Wales. Wherever you can, you should stay at home.
These can have very real consequences. You've heard cases of people who've driven X amount
of hundred miles from a city in England to go and climb Snowdonia or visit
a Welsh beach, and been arrested in the process.
That was a really clear example to me of a time actually,
from the very highest seat of government in the UK, that there was, essentially misinformation.
It was incorrect. I think there's quite a lot of examples that you can point to of misinformation
specifically affecting Wales. So, for instance we had measles outbreaks in Swansea, we've had
them in several areas of south Wales, and the only reason that happens is because of misinformation
around vaccines.
Politicians absolutely can't say that they've got clean hands when it comes
to mis and disinformation. You know, we've seen over the course of the last couple of years, politicians,
political parties, especially around election time, playing into this element of 'fake news'.
The democratic deficit, very basically, means that the political system isn't seen to
live up to its democratic ideals. There's a deficit between what people think the system
should be doing, how democratic the system should be, and how democratic it actually is.
Broadly, it decimates trust. So, on a kind of microcosm, you might see something that is fake on social media,
and that might then affect your trust in politics, or politicians or the news.
And that has a real impact on democracy, you know, if people don't trust
the information they're getting, they really question everything.
The problem with phrases like 'fake news', is that they can mean anything to anyone
and if you start labelling this is 'fake news', this is 'fake news',
it erodes the whole trust in news generally. And we know how important a credible
and trusted media is. Especially as more misinformation goes out into the world.
Simply identifying that 'fake news' is a problem is obviously important, but that's only really
the first step. One then wants to work out what one can do about it. What one can do to address it.
And there are basically three levels at which that can happen.
Firstly there's the individual. The individuals, the individual is able to take certain steps.
There's an argument obviously, with both sides, making sure that people disseminating the information
are saying the right thing and definitely aren't lying deliberately, and aren't making
mistakes in what they're saying. Obviously I'm going to pitch 'That's Devolved', but I think,
for example in Wales, the Senedd Research service has really accessible breakdowns of different policy areas.
You've always got to be sceptical, but scepticism doesn't run to not believing anything
if everything is 'fake news', then it's impossible to discredit the things that are actually rubbish,
and lies, and incorrect.
Secondly. there's the role that the media companies can,
and probably should, be doing.
There's a real responsibility here on news organisations,
on political institutions, in making sure that the information they put out is accurate, transparent
and accountable.
I think building trust with people is one of the key counters to misinformation.
As a journalist, one of the key things I try and do is demonstrate how we've got to stories.
So for instance, I use social media quite a lot to explain how we got this information and why we
feel it's relevant.
One of the biggest low-hanging fruit is imprints. So at election time, when you get
a leaflet through the door there's a little thing in the corner that says who's paid for it
and who's produced it. On social media, there is nothing of that equivalent. So, ads that you're
seeing could be from anyone. So, one of the biggest and easiest things that we could do is require
ads online, on digital campaigns, to have that kind of imprint saying who's actually paid for them.
And finally, there's a role for government. The Government themselves can take certain actions
in terms of regulating, for example, the media companies.
There is a little bit that Welsh Government can do, and they should do it, so that includes looking at whether they can
help support some kind of independent news service in Wales.
There's a responsibility here in terms of education settings,
so talking about improving political education in schools, colleges, life-long learning.
Misinformation tends to target where there's power and decision-making, and the more
decision-making and power is held in Wales, the more likely it will be to be exposed to that.