AfricaBrief, iHubOnline launch iCheck to verify election claims
To address deceptive messaging, iCheck will offer literacy training and employ AI to identify content from malicious, misinforming sources.
LILONGWE, Malawi— iHubOnline and AfricaBrief, two Malawi-based media startups, have partnered for the iCheck fact-checking initiative ahead of the 2025 elections, writes Staff Reporter.
AfricaBrief founder Winston Mwale, who directs iCheck fact-checking, highlighted the collaboration, noting synergies between the organizations.
"At AfricaBrief, we have a strong fact-checking record, while iHubOnline excels in artificial intelligence. This timely, unparalleled partnership harnesses AI's evolving role," Mwale said.
Mallick Mnela, iHubOnline's founder and iCheck's innovation director, stressed combatting election misinformation.
"We expect AI-related misinformation in 2025. Our strategy empowers public AI and media literacy," Mnela explained.
The iCheck Fact-Checking Project aims to reach readers through social media and website users with fact-checks on various public interest claims.
To address deceptive messaging, iCheck will offer literacy training and employ AI to identify content from malicious, misinforming sources.
"We're also developing an AI chatbot to help verify social media and political claims," Mnela added.
Mnela, a speaker at the 2023 JournalismAI Festival and 2023 DW Akademie Fellow, has worked with leaders in AI and journalism.
Mwale, a former Africa Check fact-checker, is a DW Akademie-trained trainer who presented on using AI in newsrooms at the 2023 JournalismAI Festival.
Call Mnela at +265 999 603 112 or Mwale at +265 991 50 07 30.