Working with independent fact-checking organisations
Fact-checking is a crucial pillar of the EU's approach to information manipulation and foreign interference. Fact-checkers help assess and verify content to provide the public with independent, accurate, and reliable information they can trust.
To promote fact-checking and raise awareness of fact-checked information to citizens, the European Union is cooperating with independent fact-checkers.
The European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO)
The EDMO is a project that supports an independent multidisciplinary community, composed of fact-checkers, academics, media literacy practitioners and other relevant stakeholders, joining forces to tackle information manipulation and foreign interference. The EDMO network provides a comprehensive geographic coverage of the EU.
In view of the 2024 European elections, the EDMO set up a dedicated task force to detect and alert about the spread of disinformation. The task force issued daily updates about debunked disinformation (fact-checks), weekly updates with disinformation trends as well as early warnings and relevant investigations. The EDMO also conducted a media literacy campaign, 'Be Elections Smart'.
The European Fact-Checking Standards Network (EFSCN)
The EFSCN is an independent association of European fact-checking organisations that upholds and promotes the highest standards of fact-checking and media literacy to combat misinformation for the public benefit.
The EFCSN and its verified members work to promote access to fact-checked trustworthy information and to raise awareness of how to assess the accuracy of information in the public sphere.
Supporting civil society, media and academia
Under Horizon Europe, Creative Europe, Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme (CERV), Erasmus+ and other programmes, the European Union is supporting civil society organisations, journalists, media organizations and researchers across Europe.
Supported projects contribute to the whole-of-society efforts to counter information manipulation and foreign interference, enhance media literacy, and protect media freedom and pluralism
The AI-CODE projects will provide media professionals with novel AI-based services to support their work in the emerging digital environment. The aim is to provide media professionals with tools and techniques to detect new forms of content manipulation.
The EU has provided around €5 million to support this project.
The AI4Debunk project aims to develop four human-centered AI-powered interfaces: a web plug-in, a collaborative platform, a smartphone app, and an AR interface. Those interfaces will support citizens to navigate the digital media landscape safely and make informed decisions.
The EU has provided around €4.9 million to support this project.
The EU-HYBNET project will focus on the preparation for and defending against hybrid threats, as well as on the development and building of a European network for the sector.
To identify the most urgent needs for countering hybrid threats, the project will bring together practitioners and stakeholders. It will undertake in-depth analysis of the gaps and needs and test the most promising innovations (technical and social).
The EU has provided around €3.5 million to support this project.
The E-engAGEd project aims to increase digital, social and political participation of young people and older adults with an intergenerational learning approach. It offers spaces for debates and exchanges between citizens of different ages about the modern information environment, digital citizenship and civic engagement.
The EU has provided around €206,000 to support this project.
The DRONE project uses a whole-school ecosystem approach that engages school leaders and parents in dialogue and considers students' digital and media literacy as critical components of crisis preparedness in school communities.
The project aims to impact at different levels through the production of innovative teacher materials and the creation of training courses to promote digital active citizenship in school communities.
The EU has provided around €1.5 million to support this project.
The RESONANT project aims to create a better picture and understanding of State and non-State actors applying information suppression as one aspect of Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI). It will develop strategies, tools and methodologies to reduce the impact and the vulnerability of target groups.
The EU has provided around €3 million to support this project.
The SOLARIS project will analyse risks associated with Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs), a class of neural networks capable of creating multimedia content (photos, videos, audio) that simulate real contents with extreme precision – often called deepfakes. The project aims to develop innovations to detect and mitigate deepfake risks.
The EU has provided around €2.8 million to support this project.
The SPEAK OUT project aims to promote exchange between international youth in different communities. Through trainings, dialogues, and large-scale events the project engages young people in democratic participation and raises awareness about information manipulation.
The EU has provided around €390.000 to support this project.