The deadline for public comments on the Electoral Commission of South Africa‘s proposed Electoral Code of Conduct on Disinformation is Wednesday, 29 July.
702’s John Perlman asked William Bird, Director at Moxii Africa (formerly Media Monitoring Africa), who has covered many elections and looked closely at the role of the media, for his opinion.
Bird said this is another incredibly positive step taken by the IEC towards trying to secure the credibility and integrity of the elections.
“As disinformation has become an increasingly large threat and the issues around it more complex, there was a need for a dedicated code to deal with the kinds of risks that this poses to elections,” Bird said.
He explained that it takes some good examples from international best practice and locates them in our environment. “And it says to political parties, you know, you have to commit to not sharing disinformation. If there is disinformation, you have to act against it. And it puts obligations on parties, on their candidates, their representatives, as well as on the platform.
“So, it’s a pretty special thing to be doing in South Africa, and we should be really pleased about this development,” said Bird.
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