Report Elections in France and Germany
French far-right candidate Marine Le Pen shows a graphic during a presidential campaign TV debate.

Fake news debunkers get ready for the vote

Anti-fake news projects have sprouted up in France and Germany, but who checks the fact-checkers and what can they really achieve?

Published on 5 April 2017 at 07:46
French far-right candidate Marine Le Pen shows a graphic during a presidential campaign TV debate.

The offices of Correct!v, a German journalists' collective, seem a bit crowded already.

Its East Berlin newsroom has a stage area where a photo shoot recently ended. There are piles of books and a British telephone box, amid second-hand furniture and bits of modern graphic design.

In one corner, a group of exiled Turkish journalists was planning their new project, when EUobserver recently visited. But space is being made for more people. From early April, a team of four or five fact-checkers will be based here looking for false news to debunk ahead of German elections.

David Schraven, a journalist who founded Correctiv, said it was a no-brainer to launch a fact-checking service.

Receive the best of European journalism straight to your inbox every Thursday

"Disinformation is a real threat to our society. We’re doing this because we want people on election day to make their decision on the basis of facts," he explained.

The election campaign of Donald Trump in the US was marked by wild allegations and conspiracy theories in partisan and […]

Was this article useful? If so we are delighted!

It is freely available because we believe that the right to free and independent information is essential for democracy. But this right is not guaranteed forever, and independence comes at a cost. We need your support in order to continue publishing independent, multilingual news for all Europeans.

Discover our subscription offers and their exclusive benefits and become a member of our community now!

Are you a news organisation, a business, an association or a foundation? Check out our bespoke editorial and translation services.

Support independent European journalism

European democracy needs independent media. Join our community!

On the same topic