Forty European experts led by Dutch specialist Madeleine de Cock Buning began on Monday to reflect on the problem of “fake news” that has been invading the Internet to an increasing degree. "Technologies have deeply changed the way citizens access the media,” the European Commissioner for digital economy and society, Mariya Gabriel said at a press conference on Monday.
Fake news, voluntary or not, are now fully part if the digital landscape. They have played a role in many election campaigns, including in the runup to the U.S. presidential election won by Donald Trump. The European Commission has therefore set up a group of high-level experts on fake news. Made up of “40 representatives from all horizons” it will be tasked with defining what exactly is fake news, and suggesting ideas for action to the Commission.
“I’m expecting from this group a clear, structured report on the added value of a European approach,” stressed Mrs. Gabriel, who wishes to avoid the fragmentation of responses to this problem. For the commissioner, the announcement by French President Emmanuel Macron of a French law on fake news “shows the importance of the issue”.
The results of the group of experts’ work, combined with those of a public consultation that will end on the 23rd of February next, will result in a strategy from the Commission on fake news by “Spring 2018”.
The Brussels Times
