The news reports chronicled India’s overwhelming successes: Indian attacks had struck a Pakistani nuclear base, downed two Pakistani fighter jets and blasted part of Pakistan’s Karachi port, the country’s oil and trade lifeline.
Each piece of information was highly
specific, but none of it was true.
Disinformation on social media in the days
during and since India and Pakistan’s intense military confrontation last month
has been overwhelming. But some also made its way into the mainstream media, a
development that alarmed analysts monitoring the evolution of outlets in India
once trusted for their independence. The race to break news and a jingoistic
approach to reporting reached a fever pitch during the four-day conflict. Some
well-known TV networks aired unverified information or even fabricated stories
aimed a burst of nationalistic fervor.
“When we think of information, we think of
anonymous people, of bots online, where you never know what the source of the
thing is,” said Sumitra Badrinathan, an assistant professor of political
science at American University who studies misinformation in South Asia. In
this case, Badrinathan said, “previously credible journalists and major media
news outlets ran straight-up fabricated stories.”
“When previously trusted sources become
disinformation outlets, it’s a really large problem,” she said.
The disinformation shared on mainstream
media platforms about the conflict between India and Pakistan is the latest
blow to what was once a vibrant journalism scene in India. Warring sides have
spread lies and propaganda for as long as there has been armed conflict. And
mainstream news outlets have not been immune from presenting their countries
battlefield efforts in a favorable light or from, at times, rushing to publish information
that later turns out to be incorrect.
But social media has exponentially
increased the potential for misinformation. And in India, there has been a
steady erosion of free speech since Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power
in 2014. Many news outlets have been pressured into suppressing news damaging
to the government’s reputation. Others have come to promote the government’s
policies. (Some small independent online news publications have pursued more accountable
journalism, but their reach is limited.)
“The information ecosystem is broken,” said Pratik Sinha, a founder of Alt News, an independent fact-checking website. Fact-checking can combat misinformation, Sinha said, but it has a cost: Alt News is fighting a defamation suit field by another media outlets. Its reporters have also been harassed. (Anupreeta Das and Pragati K.B.)
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