Combating Disinformation with Collaboration

KOMPAS/TOTOK WIJAYANTO (TOK)

Ketua KPU Hasyim Asy'ari (kiri) dan VP National News Director KG Media Budiman Tanuredjo menandatangi Nota Kesepahaman Antara KPU RI dengan PT. Kompas Media Nusantara (Harian Kompas), PT. Cipta Megaswara Televisi (Kompas TV), PT. Kompas Cyber Media (Kompas.com), dan PT. Grahanusa Mediatama (Kontan) di Jakarta, Jumat (10/6/2022).

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — The spread of disinformation and fake news is expected to occur again in the lead-up to the 2024 General Election. Therefore, election organizers and the mass media need to collaborate in combating fake news and disinformation to avoid further divisions in the nation.

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The chairman of the General Elections Commission (KPU), Hasyim Asy'ari, said in Jakarta on Friday (10/6/2022) that the press should uphold its role as the fourth pillar of democracy. For this reason, the media must remain independent so as to avoid being used for practical political interests or the interests of media moguls.

"Strategic matters and information can be reported so that there is an anticipatory perspective," Hasyim said on Friday (10/6/2022) at the signing ceremony for a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the KPU and KG (Kompas Gramedia) Media on disseminating information on the 2024 elections, which took place at KPU headquarters in Jakarta.

KG Media includes news outlets Kompas and Kompas.id, national broadcaster Kompas TV, Kompas.com, and the Kontan daily. KG Media was represented at the MoU signing ceremony by PT Kompas Media Nusantara director Budiman Tanuredjo.

According to Hasyim, as stipulated in the Constitution, the KPU served as an independent election management body, tasked with serving voters and election participants equally based on the principles of honesty, accountability and transparency. To achieve this, cooperation between the KPU and the media was important. The mass media was expected to report events in a factual manner, and should not be involved in polarizing or dividing society with biased and nonfactual news.

KG MEDIA

Illustration: KG Media logo.

“KG Media can be a clearing house of information, presenting reliable news obtained through verification in the best possible way. The media has the role of being the eyes and ears of the election organizers so they don't end up violating the principles of a good election," said Hasyim.

Cooperation

Meanwhile, Budiman said that hoaxes and fake news were a challenge of the current post-truth era. The KPU and the media both had a role to play in clearing up hoaxes. This was because misinformation, if left unchecked, had the potential to divide society further, especially when coupled with the power of search engine algorithms.

“How can collaboration between the media and the KPU contribute to ending the divisions that occur in society? The media is obliged to provide and spread more verified information," he said.

The elections must return to being a communal movement to protect the Constitution and the people as the holder of sovereignty in a democracy.

Budiman emphasized that the election organizer should also act and contribute simultaneously so that community divisions did not drag on. The elections were expected to be a means for the nation's children to reach reconciliation. The elections must return to being a communal movement to protect the Constitution and the people as the holder of sovereignty in a democracy.

Separately, Press Council member Ninik Rahayu said that amid the rampant spread of hoaxes and hate speech, the election organizers and the mass media must work together to create an atmosphere that was conducive to holding a free and fair election. (DEA)

(This article was translated by Hendarsyah Tarmizi)