Covid 19 fact checking and awareness raising desk

Covid 19 fact checking and awareness raising desk

The Kenya Community Media Network (KCOMNET) with the support of the Civil Peace Service of GIZ  has set up a fact-checking and awareness-raising desk during this time of coronavirus pandemic. The sole purpose of this desk is to combat incidences of misinformation and fake news circulating on social media, verifying and relaying factual truthful information to our community radio listeners and the general public. In addition to the fact-checking and awareness-raising, the program has also factored in the need for psychosocial support and counseling for victims of labeling, domestic and gender-based violence and inter and infra community conflicts provoked by the stress of containment, isolation or declining economic situation as a result of this pandemic.

A total of 42 community radio stations operating in different parts of the country are participating in this campaign that runs from April to May 2020 to reach out to at least 12 million listeners within the grassroot communities. We believe that this campaign will go a long way in sensitizing these communities on how they can keep themselves safe from coronavirus infections as well as averting incidences of misinformation, myths and fake news about this pandemic that mostly circulate on social media spaces and also within the people in the community. Disseminations of these messages will also boost the efforts of the national government that is also engaging the media in a series of public service announcements and updates on the status of the country

You can participate in this campaign through #tuzuiekorona which means “let’s stop corona” on our social media pages; Facebook- KCOMNET, Twitter- @kcomnet

All messages produced and disseminated by the community radio stations will be available on sikika.net  and Umoja radio for peace websites.