Helping Citizens Critically Assess and Become Resilient Against Harmful Online Disinformation
More than 20 projects are being launched to strengthen citizens' critical thinking about disinformation and enhance their ability to get involved in democratic processes
GATINEAU, QC, July 2, 2019 /CNW/ - A strong democracy relies on Canadians having access to diverse and reliable sources of news and information so that they can form opinions, hold governments and individuals to account, and participate in public conversations.
The Honourable Karina Gould, Minister of Democratic Institutions, today announced several citizen-focused activities that will build citizens' critical thinking and preparedness against online disinformation, and other online harms. She made this announcement on behalf of the Honourable Pablo Rodriguez, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Multiculturalism. This announcement is part of the Government of Canada's plan to safeguard our democratic processes from threats of interference as we approach the 2019 General Election.
On January 30, Minister Gould announced funding of $7 million for citizen-focused activities under Canadian Heritage's Digital Citizen Initiative to support eligible organizations using four existing programs: the Canada History Fund, Youth Take Charge, Exchanges Canada and the Canada Periodical Fund. The Initiative promotes civic, news and digital media literacy through third-party educational activities and programming to help citizens become resilient against online harms.
Activities range from awareness sessions and workshops to the development of learning materials from experienced and expert organizations who work with Canadians of all ages and backgrounds, in both official languages, to foster digital media and civic awareness across the country.
Investing in these projects will help Canadians critically assess online information; understand how algorithms work and when they might impact a user's online experience; recognize how and when malicious actors exploit online platforms; acquire skills to avoid being susceptible to online manipulation; and effectively engage in public debate and online discussions.
A list of the funded activities, including recipients, funding amounts and project descriptions, is available in the attached backgrounder.
Strengthening Canadians' resilience to online disinformation
Canadian Heritage will also invest $19.4 million over four years in a new Digital Citizen Research Program to help Canadians understand online disinformation and its impact on Canadian society, and to build the evidence base that will be used to identify possible actions and future policy-making in this space. This investment will also enable Canada to take part in international multi-stakeholder engagement aimed at building consensus and developing guiding principles on diversity of content online to strengthen citizen resilience to online disinformation.
Quotes
"Access to accurate, diverse and relevant news is crucial to our democracy. In response to the increase in disinformation published online and through social media, our government has made it a priority to help equip citizens with the tools and skills needed to critically assess online information."
--The Honourable Pablo Rodriguez, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Multiculturalism
"Canada's best defence against threats to democracy remains an engaged and informed public. By building their skills, Canadians can better understand online deceptive practices, recognize disinformation and be less susceptible to online manipulation. An informed and critical approach to online information by all Canadians will help safeguard our upcoming elections from those who would seek to interfere in our democracy."
--The Honourable Karina Gould, Minister Democratic Institutions
Quick Facts
The Canada History Fund encourages Canadians to improve their knowledge about Canada's history, civics and public policy.
The Collective Initiatives component of the Canada Periodical Fund provides funding to organizations for projects designed to increase the overall sustainability of the Canadian print magazine and non-daily newspaper industries.
Youth Take Charge supports youth-led projects for youth, ages 7 to 30, that exemplify the ability to strengthen youth attachment to Canada through engagement.
The Exchanges Canada Program helps youth enhance their knowledge and understanding of Canada, while connecting with other young Canadians.
As proposed in Budget 2019, the Government of Canada will also invest $19.4 million (starting in 2019-2020) to expand Canadian Heritage's Digital Citizen Initiative to create a new research program that will support stronger evidence-based policy making in the countering of disinformation and other online harms in a Canadian context. Research will be implemented through three main activities:
-- a new Digital Citizen Contribution Program
-- a joint initiative with the Social Sciences and Humanities Research
Council (SSHRC)
-- support to the Public Policy Forum's Digital Democracy Project
The new program will also support multi-stakeholder engagement and digital media literacy.
Further details will be available in due time.
Related Products
Government of Canada unveils plan to safeguard Canada's 2019 election
Enhancing citizen preparedness - Democratic Institutions
Backgrounder
Organization, Project, Website, Twitter Account
Funding, Fiscal Year,
Funding Program
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Agence Science-Presse
The rumour detector is in election mode!
Agence Science-Presse (ASP) will develop teaching guides for schools
and short videos, as well as a newsletter to encourage networking
among key Canadian media education and information education
stakeholders. ASP will also organize and deliver presentations and
workshops for a variety of audiences.
$129,345 (2019-2020)
Canada History Fund
Website: www.sciencepresse.qc.ca/detecteur-rumeurs (French only)
Twitter: @SciencePresse
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Apathy is Boring
The Creative Citizen Project
The organization will form a partnership to produce high-quality
civic education, democratic participation, algorithm awareness and
anti-disinformation messaging.
$100,000 (2018-2019)
Youth Take Charge
Citizens Initiative: Keep it Real
Youth will be engaged in an educational youth-led civic literacy
campaign that raises awareness about disinformation, provides in-
person opportunities to connect with their peers, and encourages
informed action in the 2019 Federal Election.
$340,000 (2019-2020)
Youth Take Charge
Website: www.apathyisboring.com
Twitter: @apathyisboring
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Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada
Let's Talk Digital $460,000 (2019-2020)
This project will engage youth in workshops and online educational
tools to prepare them to be critical information consumers, as well
as provide an opportunity for youth to participate in a Youth Leaders
Town Hall conference.
Youth Take Charge
Website: www.bgccan.com
Twitter: @BGCCAN
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Canadian News Media Association
News Media Canada will design, develop and promote a public awareness
program entitled "SPOT Fake News Online". The project will provide
Canadians of all ages with straightforward tools to encourage them to
critically assess digital media and identify misleading or defamatory
disinformation.
$484,300 (2019-2020)
S - Is this a credible Source? Canada Periodical Fund - Collective Initiative
P - Is the Perspective biased?
O - Are Other sources reporting the same story?
T - Is the story Timely?
Website: newsmediacanada.ca
Twitter: @newsmediacanada
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CIVIX
A proposal to protect Canadian Democracy: Building the skills of informed citizenship among youth
CIVIX will undertake a series of Democracy Bootcamps for educators
supported by learning materials and a research project assessing the
impact of civic and media literacy tools in the classroom.
$100,000 (2018-2019) $540,000 (2019-2020)
Canada History Fund
Student Vote
Through new literacy tools and access to an e-learning platform, students will get to understand the tactics behind
disinformation campaign, how to avoid being susceptible to media manipulation, and the importance of news consumption and
being an informed citizen.
$175,000 (2018-2019) $400,000 (2019-2020)
Website: www.civix.ca
Youth Take Charge
Twitter: @CIVIX_Canada
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Encounters with Canada
Module on digital democracy
An educational module on Digital Democracy will be developed to help
sensitize Canadian youth to the perils of fake news, and how to be a
responsible digital citizen. This module will be made available to
youth participating in week-long events through 2019-2020 and
2020-2021.
$100,000 (2018-2019)
Exchanges Canada Program
Website: www.ewc-rdc.ca/pub/en
Twitter: @EWC_RDC
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Fédération professionnelle des journalistes du Québec
Press Week - Schools
Presentation of the "#30sec to check it out" workshop in Quebec high
schools. Development of a partnership with high school librarians.
Creation of a magazine about journalism for female students
$32,005 (2019-2020)
Press Week - General public
A public awareness campaign on the importance of obtaining and seeking out reliable, quality information and on restoring
the public's confidence in the information media.
$116,205 (2019-2020)
#30sec to check it out
The FPJQ will give workshops designed to raise awareness among cégep and university students and the general public about
the dangers of fake news and explain how to identify it and fight back. The FPJQ also wants to create a new module on how
fake news spreads. This will involve developing a few different versions of the workshop and assembling a team of
journalists who will be trained to present the various versions of the "#30sec to check it out" workshop.
Websites: fpjq.org (French only), 30secondes.org
$54,360 (2019-2020)
Canada Periodical Fund - Collective Initiative
Twitter: @FPJQ
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Global Vision
Junior Team Canada Digital Citizenship Ambassador Program
Through a four-day summit, online forums and a video challenge, youth
will be engaged in a hands-on leadership and entrepreneurship
program that will provide them with the opportunity to gain skills
and knowledge, and to engage in society, politics and government on
digital platforms.
$260,000 (2019-2020)
Youth Take Charge
Website: www.globalvision.ca
Twitter: @myglobalvision
--- ---
Historica Canada
Critical Digital Literacy
The Critical Digital Literacy Project will produce a series of three
bilingual videos and a bilingual education guide to give Canadians a
foundation in critical digital literacy for assessing historical
narratives and current events.
$250,000 (2019-2020)
Canada History Fund
Website: www.historicacanada.ca
Twitter: @HistoricaCanada
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Institute for Canadian Citizenship
Defending Citizenship: Building resilience, strengthening democracy
The Institute for Canadian Citizenship (ICC) will create a multi-
faceted digital engagement project that leverages their national
network of new Canadian citizens and the ICC's experience and
knowledge of the foundations of civil society.
$250,000 (2019-2020)
Canada History Fund
Website: www.icc-icc.ca
Twitter: @ICCICC
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Journalists for Human Rights
Fighting disinformation through strengthened media and citizen preparedness
Development and deployment of learning materials, curricula and new
media tools through ongoing workshops for journalists and
facilitation of public digital and news literacy to combat
misinformation
$250,691 (2019-2020)
Canada Periodical Fund - Collective Initiative
Website: www.jhr.ca
Twitter: @JHRNEWS
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Magazines Canada
Magazine strategies in the age of disinformation
Magazines Canada will identify successful tools and strategies, both
domestic and international, that combat the "fake news" phenomenon,
thereby equipping the industry to promote its trustworthiness to
audiences including readers and advertisers.
$63,000 (2019-2020)
The project is a compilation of training sessions, awareness-raising
activities and tools to better position Canada's magazine media as
trusted sources of news and information. To do so, Magazines Canada
will partner with FIPP, the network for global media, to uncover and
promote successful strategies and campaigns that have countered
misinformation on the international, as well as on the domestic,
stage. Canada Periodical Fund - Collective Initiative
Website: magazinescanada.ca
Twitter: @magscanada
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McGill University in cooperation with the University of Ottawa
The Digital Ecosystem Research Challenge
The Max Bell School of Public Policy will launch and organize the
Digital Ecosystem Research Challenge. The national competition will
identify and fund research projects, tool development, and citizen-
led experiments to better understand the information ecosystem in the
lead up to and during the 2019 federal election.
$1,196,205 (2019-2020)
Canada History Fund
Website:www.mcgill.ca/maxbellschool/
Twitter: @MaxBellSchool
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MediaSmarts
Empowering Canadians to critically assess digital media
MediaSmarts will create a multi-pronged approach to combat
disinformation online, including an extensive social media campaign
and online learning materials. The project will culminate in October
2019 with Media Literacy Week, the world's longest-running event
focused on raising awareness of media and digital literacy-including
the importance of digital citizenship among youth, parents, educators
and the general public.
$650,000 (2019-2020)
Canada History Fund
Website: www.mediasmarts.ca
Twitter: @MediaSmarts
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New Canadian Media
Good Digital Citizens: Empowering Immigrant Journalists in their Communities
Anti-disinformation training for journalists. Targeted reader survey
on journalism credibility. The project will help mitigate the impacts
of disinformation within Canada's diverse immigrant communities by
providing knowledge, skills and tools for identification, as well as
engage these communities in an online discourse.
$66,517 (2019-2020)
Canada Periodical Fund - Collective Initiative
Website: www.newcanadianmedia.ca
Twitter: @NewCdnMedia
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Ryerson University
Democratic Discourse
$290,250 (2019-2020)
The Democratic Engagement Exchange and the Ryerson Leadership Lab will
address the growing challenge of online disinformation and fostering
civic literacy. The project will include the research and development
of digital and civic literacy online and print materials, training,
and distribution of materials to community-based organizations
committed to fostering civic engagement.
Canada History Fund
Website: www.ryerson.ca/arts/research-and-innovation/democratic-engagement-exchange/
Twitter: @RUEngageX
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Samara Centre for Democracy
Field guide to online political conversations
The Samara Centre for Democracy will create resources to provide
research-based advice to Canadians about the nature of social media
platforms and how they shape our online interactions.
$59,200 (2019-2020)
Canada History Fund
Website: www.samaracanada.com
Twitter: @SamaraCDA
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Saskatchewan Weekly Newspapers Association
SPOT Fake News Online - SK
SWNA will work with News Media Canada in a public awareness campaign
and educational resource development, targeted to audiences in
Saskatchewan.
$70,055 (2019-2020)
Canada Periodical Fund - Collective Initiative
Website: swna.com
Twitter: @swnainfo
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Simon Fraser University
$175,000 (2019-2020)
Citizens in action: Canadians tackling misinformation in the digital age
Canada History Fund
The Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue will create a citizen-powered anti-disinformation project designed to raise
awareness of online disinformation. Reaching all regions of Canada in both official languages, the project will spark
discussions about disinformation through a national poll and awareness campaign.
Website: www.sfu.ca\dialogue.html
Twitter: @SFUDialogue
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A few other activities are currently being considered. Details will be available in due time.
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Associated Links
Link to Democratic Institutions - Safegarding Democracy
Digital Citizen Initiative - Online disinformation
SOURCE Canadian Heritage
