Mumbai: Way2News, a hyperlocal digital news app, has announced that it has doubled down its efforts to combat fake news by making significant investments across its entire news publishing cycle. By leveraging the power of AI and human intelligence, Way2News has instituted a series of advanced measures to ensure that its users receive only reliable and authentic news.
The platform's overall initiative is aimed at protecting the very fabric of society by delivering news that is trustworthy and unbiased. Way2News employs a blend of cutting-edge technology and human interface to effectively identify and flag fake news articles. It has also established a team of fact-checkers who manually verify news articles before publishing them on the platform.
Addressing the critical problem of fake news, Way2News founder & CEO Raju Vanapala said, “We understand the detrimental impact of fake news on society and are committed to tackling this issue head-on. Our AI is equipped to analyze names, numbers, and dates linked to a topic at a primary level. By cross-referencing them with similar or linked topics, we can make informed decisions about the accuracy of the information. We remain steadfast in our mission to provide trustworthy and relatable news to a billion Indians. Our fact-checking models are continuously evolving and ensuring that accurate and verified information reaches its users.”
According to the comprehensive report on crime in India published by the National Crime Records Bureau, the instances of filed cases related to the dissemination of fake news were 486 in 2019, 1,527 in 2020, and 882 in 2021. The state-wise data further provides insights into the regions most affected by this issue. Amongst the states mentioned, Telangana stands out prominently, with 218 reported cases in 2021, accounting for nearly 25 per cent of the total cases in that year. This figure surpasses all other states, indicating the highest concentration of incidents in Telangana. Additionally, the city of Hyderabad recorded 84 cases in 2021, which is the highest amongst other cities.
Headquartered in a region heavily affected by fake news, Way2news is focused on addressing the problem within its immediate surroundings and has taken action on 150 instances of fake news thus far, demonstrating its prominent role in combating the proliferation of misinformation.
Way2News has programmed its algorithms in a manner that it can detect critical patterns, manipulated content in images and videos, and potential red flags, despite the complexity of techniques used for manipulation.
“Fake news often exhibits less information density with less concise and less specific details. At Way2News, we are integrating linguistic signals into our AI systems. We analyse the factuality of a story based on previous misinformation reported as well as subjective and hyperbolic tones used.” added Vanapala.
To uphold credibility and counter misinformation, Way2News has implemented a unique code system across all its stories. Each story displayed on the app includes a clickable link in the format way2.co/xyzx, which serves as an identifier. This link allows users to easily fact-check the authenticity of a story and avoid forwarding false information. By encouraging users to verify information through the provided link, Way2News aims to prevent the spread of fake news. Additionally, it maintains a robust social media presence, actively engaging on platforms such as WhatsApp and Twitter.
Way2News has been successful in identifying and removing various fake news articles from its app. Over the years, it has taken various measures to identify the source of fake news and take corrective measures.
