ICFJ’s project “Disarming Disinformation” to announce at ISOJ winners of grants to investigative journalists

They’re investigating disinformation as it relates to politics, health issues, womens’ rights and migration. And more than that, they’re learning ways to combat it.

The 24th International Symposium on Online Journalism (ISOJ) will feature a special announcement from the Disarming Disinformation program, launched this year by the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ), with support from the Scripps Howard Foundation.

On Friday, April 14, at 12:10 p.m. U.S. Central Time, Cristina Tardáguila, senior program director at ICFJ, will explain how a group of 20 journalists traveled to Austin prior to ISOJ to participate in a 48-hour investigative marathon – an “Investigathon” – as part of the Disarming Disinformation program.

Participants, selected in recent months, aim to discover (and reveal) the players behind the financing of the most diverse types of disinformation that circulate in the Americas, according to Tardáguila.

“Over the course of 48 hours of work, journalists will focus on tools, databases, artificial intelligence and many reporting techniques to unravel who paid for so many lies,” she said.

Mentors for the “Investigathon” are giants in the world fighting against disinformation: Claire Wardle, Craig Silverman, Giannina Segnini, Patricia Campos Mello, Laura Zommer and Chris Guess.

On the first day of ISOJ, ICFJ will announce the eight winners of $10,000 grants to carry out their investigations.

“All ‘Investigathon’ participants represent a transnational team that previously agreed to work collaboratively to show that lies have no barriers,” Tardáguila said, adding that more than 30 media from the Americas will be represented.

ISOJ, which began in 1999, brings together journalists, media executives, scholars and students to discuss the impact of technology on journalism today and in the future. It is an innovative conference that bridges the gap between the news industry and academia. 

For updates and additional information, you can visit ISOJ’s website, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. If you have any questions, please contact us at isoj@austin.utexas.edu.