2019/Grants/Tech based factchecking and dissemination mechanism—for the community and by the community—for crowdsourced information
Title:
Tech based factchecking and dissemination mechanism—for the community and by the community—for crowdsourced information
Name:
Digital Empowerment Foundation
Wikimedia username:
E-mail address:
ravi.guria@defindia.net
Resume:
Geographical impact:
India
Type of project:
Technology
What is your idea?
Web and mobile application based real time tracker in English and Indian languages with predictive capacity that can measure the impact and spread of COVID–19 and use crowdsourcing from the ground to receive misinformation that will be fact-checked by the network of trained community members across India and shared back on the platform adopting a methodology that will be open and transparent. Furthermore, AI and ML tools will be used to (1) tracks spread of the disease and network analysis (2) provides points of and information on access to essential goods and services based on location (3) needs assessment (4) maps resource requirements (5) maps community best practices (6) social protection schemes promised (7) status of public service delivery (8) predict resource requirements (9) produce evidence based policy briefs. Uses crowdsourced data and data from public sources with efforts towards connecting with concerned Government departments for greater access to data.
Why is it important?
Crises have always been a breeding ground of information operations. India’s battle against Covid-19 has many obstacles - large crowds, a stretched health system and inadequate infrastructure, and most of all—there is a total lack of structured information ecosystem and network to counter information poverty at every level, aspect and domain. Furthermore, in a country where 70% of the population resides in rural India and fresh off the bat in their use of smartphones and cheap data—lack media literacy, critical thinking and ability to process information based on factuality—is creating an environment of intense misinformation and disinformation that is taking its toll—and gravely impacting the society and the country socially, economically and psychologically.
Is your project already in progress?
How is it relevant to credibility and Wikipedia? (max 500 words)
Most of the rural India suffers from information scarcity—and in an information age—information poverty is the biggest set back to development. Lack of knowledge and information is adversely impacting the far-flung marginalised rural and tribal communities socially and economically. They cannot avail of relevant government entitlements because of lack of information transaction with the government—as a result, in many cases many denotified tribal communities don’t even exist according to government records. It has been observed that during Covid-19 crises, information status is the deciding factor in the survivability quotient of a community. Many marginalised rural and tribal communities have been gravely impacted because of lack of timely information. Furthermore, the communities which have gained basic digital access and use smartphones, they have become victims to misinformation—because they lack critical thinking skills to process fact from fake. The mobile and web application will establish an information ecosystem from crowdsourced data from the ground—that will inform and educate marginalised rural and tribal communities of Covid-19 to strengthen not only their capacity to survive in the face of crisis—but their ability to support others through the dissemination of relevant knowledge and information. Besides, factchecking is a crucial aspect of the application—that will address the flow of misinformation at the rural level. The technology will be made effective on the ground through information cadres—which are driven by DEF’s trained SoochaPreneurs or Information Entrepreneurs—who are working round the clock to assist the rural communities with timely information and infrastructural support in the crisis. They will be able to efficiently dedicate their time and resources through constant acquisition of crowdsourced data from the ground—and channelize their efforts through an information ecosystem, which connects everyone for open and transparent engagement. Wikipedia is a digital platform that is controlled by the people to share their information and knowledge remotely with each other. The proposal has adopted the vision and mission of Wikipedia of crowdsourcing information and knowledge from the ground—to build an information ecosystem through tech enabled nodal points or Information Entrepreneurs—for open and transparent verification and processing of information.
What is the ultimate impact of this project?
India has been gravely challenged by misinformation and disinformation. This is primarily because rural and semi-urban population that is gradually gaining access to cheap smartphones and data—still lack adequate skills for critical thinking and processing information on the basis of its factuality. The ultimate impact of the project is to establish a digitally enabled remote information ecosystem to turn marginalised rural and tribal communities into information rich communities—driven by Information Entrepreneurs, who will operate as nodal points for factual information and knowledge dissemination covering a certain number of villages in a district. These Information Entrepreneurs will constantly engage with each other to process and verify information through the proposed digital platform—leading the platform to evolve into an open and transparent information bank of factual information through verified crowdsourced data from the ground.
Could it scale?
The platform has the potential of organically scaling itself beyond Covid-19 crisis (which will last at least for 6 to 9 months)—and establish itself as a bank of fact-checked information from across India—by the people and for the people. More nodal points mean strengthening of processing centres of verified information and knowledge across a population of 130 crore Indians—of which 70% reside in rural India. Besides, the platform will also complement government’s efforts to engage with information rich rural communities through better governance.
Why are you the people to do it?
For nearly the past two decades DEF has been working to leverage technology and access to information towards the achievement of development outcomes. It is present across more than 600 locations in India and offers services across access and infrastructure, education and empowerment, governance and citizen services, markets and social enterprises, knowledge hub and network, and research and advocacy. It works through models like Community Information Resource Centre (CIRC), Smart Villages (Smartpur project), Digital Cluster Development Programme, and Information Entrepreneurship programme (Soochnapreneur and SoochnaSeva programme) for increasing social protection coverage in rural and underserved locations in India. It aims to leverage its considerable field presence and experience in coordinating access to data required to support better access to information with predictive capacity both for citizens and governments in this difficult time.
What is the impact of your idea on diversity and inclusiveness of the Wikimedia movement?
India has a population of 130 crore—of which 70% reside in rural india. India happens to be the most diverse country in the world in terms of language, culture, religion, caste and creed. Misinformation and disinformation in the last 2 years has challenged the trust and credibility of people towards two vital pillars of Indian democracy—democratically elected government and media. This has even taken its toll on social harmony. Specially, elections are being used to divide rural population on the lines of caste and religion to gain advantage in elections—as opposed to efficient and effective delivery of governance. In fact, India was predicted to follow Brazil as an infamous example of WhatsApp election—where WhatsApp was used extensively as a weapon to disseminate disinformation. AI enabled platform will address misinformation and disinformation through crowdsourced verified information dissemination mechanism, while becoming a source of collective factual information bank that can be remotely accessed all across India. This platform and project is set to promote the fundamentals of diversity and inclusiveness of Wikimedia movement.
What are the challenges associated with this project and how you will overcome them?
Community mobilisation and Training into media literacy, critical thinking and crowdsourcing skills will be the biggest challenge. Therefore, we’ll be targeting youth in the communities and prepare them as changemakers. The whole mobilisation programme and training will be driven by the youth.
How much money are you requesting?
We are requesting 10000 US dollars
How will you spend the money?
The fund will be spent of the following— Building the mobile and web based platform Training the first set of Information Entrepreneurs in few strategic locations in India—into information verification and dissemination through the platform. Community mobilisation and training into media literacy, critical thinking and crowdsourcing skills.
How long will your project take?
Building mobile and web platform—Training of Information Entrepreneurs—and Community mobilisation and media training in critical thinking and crowdsourcing skills—will take 3-4 months to complete and become operational. Thereafter, its an ongoing project that will progress, grow and evolve into first crowdsourced AI enabled tech platform of verified factual information—connecting 70% rural population of India.
Have you worked on projects for previous grants before?
We haven't received a grant from Wikipedia before