News agencies should harness AI to combat misinformation, says Fahmi Fadzil

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Communications minister Fahmi Fadzil has urged news agencies to leverage AI to combat misinformation in the digital media era.

The minister said there is a need to "fight fire with fire", highlighting how AI was already being used by organisations such as Blackberry to enhance digital security and counter AI-driven threats, reported Bernama.

Speaking at the Organisation of Asia-Pacific News Agencies (OANA) 54th Executive Board Meeting dinner on Monday (17 Feb), the minister reportedly said that there's an opportunity to look at what AI can do for news organisations to fight the scourge or misinformation.

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He added that the government recently introduced a fact-checking chatbot named AI Fact-Check Assistant (Aifa) to verify fake news and information on WhatsApp. Aifa was created to fight misinformation directly on the messaging platform following a survey which revealed that many Malaysians relied on WhatsApp for news.

With Aifa, users may directly chat with the bot and ask questions in Bahasa or English, with more languages to be added in the future.

In addition, the minister reportedly said that the shift to social media as a news source has significantly impacted traditional media advertising. He also noted the recent exchange of Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) between Malaysian national news agency Bernama, Indonesia's ANTARA and Japan's Kyodo News. The MoUs aim to renew the existing cooperation between the news networks and to improve content.

This isn't the first time Fahmi has urged media professionals to harness the capabilities of AI. In November last year, the minister said that Facebook should invest in new AI technology to combat harmful content, adding that AI could play a crucial role in addressing online crimes such as scams, online gambling, cyberbullying and child sexual exploitation too.

At the time, the minister said that social media platforms were often slow in their response to harmful content and only remove them after complaints from authorities.

He added that platforms have to take a more proactive approach in helping the government combat crimes online.

Despite Fahmi's push to leverage AI, it may take more efforts to encourage Malaysians to use it. In fact, an Ipsos study published earlier this month revealed that Malaysia is among the nations more concerned about job displacement due to AI. Neighbouring countries Thailand and Singapore follow behind.

Their anxiety towards AI also reflects a broader concern about the future of work in the age of automation where young people in the region are generally nervous about the future. Their fears about AI are also linked with their concerns regarding digital privacy and security where seven in 10 APAC consumers are weary of how their information is being collected by companies.

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