To succeed, its editorial teams rely on mechanisms and tools to guarantee the truthfulness of the information, data and images they broadcast and to ensure that all such information is context-specific and reliable. In April 2022, Atresmedia attended the seminar on disinformation organised by the European Parliament in Strasbourg, which discussed what the institution is doing to fight disinformation and reflected on the current situation and how this problem affects society. Legislation on the matter was also addressed.
The commitment to rigour and truthful information remains a key priority at Antena 3 Noticias, which has a sound strategy in place to combat fake news. Aside from the fact-checking and verification work carried out on programmes such as Antena 3 Noticias, Espejo Público and Antena 3 Internacional, the channel also works to combat disinformation on social media through VerificaA3N. Atresmedia was already posting information on Facebook and Twitter in a bid to dismantle hoaxes and fake news and is now doing the same on Instagram and TikTok.
- Provide valuable, dynamic and interactive content
- Reach out to a younger audience that is especially sensitive to these issues
- Become invested in the topics that are trending on both networks by creating our own specific content tailored to this younger target segment
- Generate more impact by referring to URLs online to give users more context
- Encourage more active community participation
The ongoing efforts of Antena 3 Noticias to fight fake news, hoaxes and the misuse of social networks is the focus of the digital debate in Lo Hablamos?, a programme streamed from the Antena 3 Noticias website to tackle various topical issues. For instance, the programme includes a section where A3N social media followers can ask the guests questions.
Fact-checking is a job that involves the entire editorial staff of Antena 3 Noticias. Along these lines, the VerificaA3N initiative works with the various areas of the newsroom to stop hoaxes and combat misinformation. A particular highlight in 2022 was the use of specialised tools and apps to stop images and videos relating to the conflict in Ukraine from being posted out of context. An example of this fact-checking work was the release of a map of fact-checked information on the conflict, which was broadcast on Espejo Público and is also available on the Antena 3 Noticias website.
Meanwhile, for our employees to be able to report and fact check in digital environments, the Digital area of Atresmedia delivered a Digital Transformation Course to the entire newsroom of Antena 3 Noticias, addressing issues such as the ‘synchronised newsroom’, whereby editors from other departments and sections —not only the specific editors of digital subjects— can contribute valuable content for both the website and social networks. Also, to coincide with International Fact-Checking Day, Atresmedia shed light on various hoaxes such as those that had emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic and others relating to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
In April 2022, Atresmedia attended the seminar on disinformation organised by the European Parliament in Strasbourg, which discussed what the institution is doing to fight disinformation, reflected on the current state of play and how this problem affects society, and addressed current legislation on the matter.
For laSexta, as with Antena 3, the phenomenon of disinformation was particularly significant in 2022. Once again, the war in Ukraine has tested the media’s ability to spot hoaxes and fake news. To further illustrate its commitment to telling the truth, two new initiatives were launched during the period:
- Explaining current affairs and the doubts they can generate within society in a novel way on laSexta Xplica, which is aired on Saturday nights.
- Adapting laSexta’s newsroom to digital transformation and readying it for the future.
The new laSexta Xplica show is a forum for analysing current affairs, where citizens and experts alike take centre stage. This idea stems from an awareness that we all live in an increasingly complex world and that citizens need to be informed, in a simple and educational way, about the most pressing issues of the present day. Thus, citizenship and interaction with the public are the main premises underlying this new show. They are given a platform where they can share their experiences and then pose questions to the experts. This panel of experts and analysts sit on what is called the Grada de Xplicadores stand, where they tackle the topic to be addressed that night. There are also Xplicas, sections of the show that give a quick and detailed overview of complex topical issues.
Therefore, laSexta Xplica joins the rest of the channel’s programmes already bringing the fight to disinformation (Al Rojo Vivo, Más Vale Tarde, laSexta Clave, etc.). laSexta spends a great deal of time and resources in carrying out news fact-checking exercises. This Group-wide fight against hoaxes in programming is carried out alongside the fantastic team at Newtral, a start-up specialised in factchecking and led by journalist Ana Pastor.
Ana and her team on the programme El Objetivo de Ana Pastor are leading the fight against disinformation. Thanks to their immense knowledge and international renown, they are the first Spanish team member of the International Fact-Checking Network, making them benchmarks when it comes to live fact-checking, dismantling fake news and fighting disinformation and hoaxes online.
As we mentioned earlier, 2022 was a challenging year in terms of disinformation. The fact-checking of videos, information and messages that saturated the Internet following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine took up a large part of the resources of the editorial staff of laSexta. Along these lines, a team of journalists specialised in fighting hoaxes was set up and has since been working throughout the conflict to ensure that the information broadcast on our channels is first screened and approved.
This whole project is further strengthened by the decision to physically merge the lasexta.com team into the laSexta newsroom, a process that is now complete.
The new digital offering of laSexta.com has made it the leading online news channel, reaching 11 million users and garnering 53 million page views. LaSexta Noticias is the only private television programme to have its own data and fact-checking team. The department was launched in 2015, making it the first of its kind and it has since become a benchmark.
The digital transformation is also viewed as the channel’s big project looking forward, as it will shape the new approach to making television. We need to be aware of the changes going on in the world and make them part of the present by listening to new ideas, innovation and talent. Lastly, all laSexta employees have been trained in digital techniques and multimedia content.
