I’ve been working on a project called Checkdesk, which is a tool for verifying news stories and holding the media and public officials accountable. The site encourages collaborative fact checking and wants participation from people like you for their campaign in Lebanon called “Taakad” (verify in Arabic). To get you motivated, the developers are giving away prizes for the most active participants. These include three tablet devices as seen in this photo from their site:
The best thing is that it is easy and fun. Just go to the Taakad site, create an account and start flagging articles, TV reports, tweets or other posts that have issues you think need to be verified or further discussed, questioned or contextualized. The competition will be held throughout November so get started asap if you want to win.
Some recent Checkdesk stories I have been working on include:
“Unprecedented Ashura commemorations in Damascus?”
“Eden Rock project: Journalism or Advertising?”
” ISIS and Nusra involvement in Tripoli?”
“Mystery Beirut visit by US general”
“Gunmen attack hospital “over body hair”
You can contribute to these or other stories on the main page and they don’t necessarily have to be political. The site is also available in Arabic, by clicking on the Arabic tab. For more details on the developers and tips on using the Checkdesk tool, see this article on their partner site, Social Media Exchange or SMEX.
Here’s a quick video on Checkdesk:
There is also an article and tutorial in Arabic.
To boost collaboration, share links to your stories on social media using the #Taakad hashtag.
