Questions help explore whether info is news or nonsense
I’ve had some interesting discussion lately with a family member about something he perceives as big news, but which has not been reported by any traditional media outlets, notably none of the most trusted legacy sources. I have not said that his “news” is not true, only that is not verified.

Figuring out what is and isn’t news, and what is and isn’t reliable information, is an issue not just with my adult family member, but with society (and especially young people) writ large. A study called News Literacy in America: A survey of teen information attitudes, habits and skills (2024) found that:

• 

  News Literacy Project

  Nearly half of teens surveyed thought the press does more to harm democracy than to protect it.
• Eight in 10 teens surveyed reported seeing posts on social media that spread or promote conspiracy theories, and of those, 81% said they are inclined to believe one or more of them.
• Most teens struggled to distinguish between different types of information, such as news, advertisement, opinion and entertainment. (News Literacy Project)

How do we help teens, and my relative, make sense of the infosphere? The best way to address these issues is through rigorous training in media literacy, which I’ve taught in many different forms in many different places around the world. As I teach it, rule number one is to remove partisan considerations from the discussion. In lots of places, but especially the US, partisanship chokes off discussions like overgrown weeks in a drain pipe. I also strive to choke off conversations that use condescending labels like conspiracy theorist for people who believe and spread unverified information. As a media literacy trainer, the worst thing you can tell someone is that they information that they believe is wrong, or that they are stupid for believing it. (In fact, my family member is smart and analytical). Instead, I give my trainees the tools to analyze information themselves, and come to their own conclusions as to whether the information they believe is genuine or not.

These media literacy tools are crowned by a list of questions one can employ to analyze information. These questions include:

--What person or entity created or shared the information? What is their expertise? Do they have first-hand knowledge of the news, or is their knowledge merely hearsay? (Hearsay, as we know, is inadmissible in court!)

--Why did they create it or share it?

--How do the creators benefit from disseminating the message? (The benefit could be financial, political, social, etc.)

--Who does the message harm (Political enemies? Business competitors?)

--Who is the target audience of the information?

--How does the story or information grab the audience’s attention? (If the attention grabber is emotional rather than logical, that’s a red flag for misinformation).

--What points of view are shown? Have those who dispute the information being given space to share their dissent, or is the information presented with only one side given?

--Are salient facts are omitted, or distorted?

--How does the way the information is presented (framed) change the meaning of the information? Is there context? (How do omitted or distorted facts and a one-sided presentation change how the information is perceived by the target audience?)

--Where is the hard evidence? This includes first-hand testimony (not “I’ve heard” or “I’ve been told”) and documentation, especially financial documentation.

--Is the information verified by multiple sources? Most journalism outlets use the three source rule. One source is not sufficient, especially when there is no trail of documentation to support the information this source is presenting.

--Is the information outdated? Is this an old story simply repackaged?

There are more, but these are a good start. Yes, it’s impractical to do this kind of analysis with all the information we consume. Still, being aware and skeptical, thinking about the right questions to ask, and diversifying ones’ news sources can go a long way to clear out the weeds clogging our civil discourse.

 

The latest Peace Journalist magazine has arrived!
The June edition features insightful stories from Cameroon, Greece, India, and Bangladesh; and includes insightful reports about AI and peace journalism, and peace linguistics. Enjoy!

https://online.fliphtml5.com/cvabr/Peace-Journalist-June-2026-final/#p=1

Study says indigenous voices are marginalized.
How can they be amplified instead?
One of peace journalism’s most essentially important tenets has always been giving a voice to the marginalized, to those traditionally ignored or given only lip service by the media.

A study by the Thai NGO Knowledge for Development titled “The State of Indigenous Journalists in Asia” confirms the need to be vigilant about giving a voice to the marginalized. The study looked at seven Asian nations (Cambodia, Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, Nepal, and the Philippines) and found that “indigenous journalists are severely underrepresented in national media institutions across the seven countries. Indigenous journalists are often relegated to junior roles and perceived as biased. Indigenous women face triple marginalization (gender, ethnicity, and poverty) and are nearly invisible in media leadership.” It found that in addition, structural challenges like funding, inadequate training, press freedom, journalists’ safety, and digital divides often hinder the growth of indigenous media. 

When indigenous persons (IPs) are covered, these stories are “largely centered on indigenous culture, costumes, and lifestyle features. However, they did not raise real issues of human rights, land rights, indigenous rights, and other injustices impacting their lives,” according to the study.

With this in mind, I’ve worked hard to include indigenous voices in the programming for journalists that I coordinate here at the East-West Center. For example, our Jefferson Fellowship program last year included a fascinating visit to the Heʻeia National Estuarine Research Reserve and Heʻeia Fishpond on Oahu to learn about traditional aquacultural practices. Our visit included an informative, eye-opening tour given by Dr. Kawika Winter, director of the reserve. The fellows also interviewed indigenous farmers in northern Thailand who have transitioned from producing poppies to producing coffee. This fall, the Jefferson Fellows will be participating in a panel titled, “AI and Indigenous Hawaiian Society: Impacts and Opportunities.” The panel will feature Kamuela Enos, director of the Office of Indigenous Knowledge and Innovation at the University of Hawaii, talking about digital sovereignty (the right of Indigenous communities and Nations to govern, control, and manage their own digital ecosystems). 

While I believe this programming is useful, we need to do more than just amplify these voices of wisdom. The journalism establishment and larger society must empower indigenous people to shape their own narratives about themselves and their communities. This means “indigenizing media” to “create spaces where IPs have greater access and meaningful participation, their voices are heard and there is adequate coverage of their issue from their perspectives,” according to Dev Kumar Sunuwar, an indigenous media professional from Nepal. (study, pg. 19). 

The Knowledge for Development study makes several recommendations:
--Formal recognition of IPs and enforcement of UNDRIP Article 16 that deals with IP’s right to establish their own media.
--Quotas, scholarships, and support for indigenous journalists in colleges, universities and media institutions.
--Dedicated funding, safety protocols, training, and mentorship programs.
--Decolonization of journalism curricula and media institutions. Sunuwar from Nepal explains, “The concept of decolonizing media includes the notion that media outlets should have better representation of indigenous journalists, who would provide different, comprehensive, and more accurate coverage of indigenous peoples rather than merely reporting on death and destruction.”
--Support for regional indigenous media networks and collaboration.

Our media and societies are stronger when indigenous and other marginalized voices are heard and respected.

A story in the Philippines media outlet
Rappler about indigenous people and
news media. (Link)

World Food Programme's HungerMap

Hunger reporting gets boost with new reliable, real time data tool
If tariffs, the price of gas, climate migration, or crime had increased 15-fold, the world’s media would be in an uproar, splashing the sensational details across pages and banners and TV screens daily, even hourly. Yet, IPC5 food insecurity – the most severe form of hunger - has increased 15-fold from 85,000 in 2019 to 1.4 million in 2025.

How often have we read about this?

When it comes to reporting about hunger, all too often, traditional media leave audiences wanting more.

First, food security crises are grossly underreported. For example, in Zimbabwe, drought threatens the food security of millions, especially in rural areas. “It was heartbreaking to see the severity of the 2023/24 El Niño-induced drought in Zimbabwe affecting millions of people in Zimbabwe so widely overlooked by the media. Communities struggled to access clean water and sufficient food. The lack of international attention is hardly helpful when families in urgent need are hoping for support,” says Charlene Pellsah Ambali, Assistant CARE Country Director in Zimbabwe. (CARE report) 

When it does get reported, hunger is all too often framed as episodic—a short term famine that occurs as the result of a war or natural disaster. Yet, hunger experts know that the factors driving hunger are often long term or systemic. Also, media often attribute hunger to poor individual choices or bad luck, again rather than as a systemic issue. Those experiencing hunger are portrayed only as helpless victims, stripped of their agency, in ways that reinforce harmful stereotypes that lead to compassion fatigue. (News Media Framing of Food Policy; WorldHunger.org; Investigating News Media and Third Sector Views on Food Poverty; Global Investigative Journalism Network). 

On top of this, journalists who want to responsibly report about food insecurity can find it difficult to get the real-time, updated information they need. That problem, however, has been solved by a new online tool from the World Food Programme. 

HungerMap is a new tool that “offers AI-assisted forecasting capabilities of projected food needs in WFP designated Hunger Hotspots – 16 countries with populations already struggling with catastrophic hunger. Studies have shown that early warning of emerging food security issues can reap tremendous cost savings and operational efficiencies…HungerMap Live platform brings together data from WFP’s extensive network of more than 300 analysts working on food security monitoring and mapping with information from dozens of trusted partners. This includes the global benchmark for food insecurity data (known as IPC), government validated statistics, climate, market, agricultural and economic data…HungerMap Live answers three critical questions: What is the current state of food security across the world? Which countries and regions require urgent attention? And what are the underlying factors contributing to food security needs?” (WFP press release)

Armed with reliable real-time information, journalists now have the ability to give world hunger the attention it deserves. One only hopes that they will have the desire to do so.

Call for articles: The Peace Journalist magazine
The Peace Journalist, a semi-annual magazine produced by the Center for Global Peace Journalism, is seeking submissions for its June edition. Submissions should be 800-1600 words, and address peace journalism/peace media projects and research. Please also submit photos, if possible. We do not run articles about general peace projects or processes unless they have a strong, central media component/angle.

The previous edition of The Peace Journalist (Dec. 2025) can be found at https://www.scribd.com/document/955354969/Peace-Journalist-Dec-2025 . 

The deadline for submissions is May 4. The magazine usually fills up quickly, so the sooner you can get your pieces in, the better. Please submit to steven.youngblood@fulbrightmail.org .Thank you in advance for your submissions.