MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Paraguay signs understanding with Meta to tackle electoral fake news

The convention in Paraguay addressed the issue of fake news and the misuse of artificial intelligence during electoral campaigns

Paraguay's Electoral Justice reached an understanding this week with social media giants Meta to tackle campaign misinformation. The company owns platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. The agreement was reached at a meeting in Asunción on the occasion of the Aug. 20-21 XVII Inter-American Meeting of Electoral Authorities 2024.

At the convention, Paraguay's Superior Electoral Court (TSJE) Chief Justice César Rossel addressed the scourges of fake news and artificial intelligence in dirty campaigns, which elicited a response from the authorities.

Hence, the main objective of the TSJE was to promote the signing of agreements to target these matters. In this regard, the TSJE was devising with the Information and Communication Technologies Ministry (MITIC) a series of strategies to develop the electronic signature and identity of people for future popular initiatives, explained Rossel.

At the signing with Meta, Rossel was joined by TSJE Justice Jorge Bogarín González, while the company was represented by Íñigo Fernández, director of Public Policy for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, and Javier Azis, manager of Public Policy for Spanish-speaking South America.

“This meeting was aimed at establishing strategic alliances to mitigate disinformation during electoral processes, one of the main topics discussed during the RAE 2024,” the TSJE also said in a statement.

The Inter-American Meeting of Electoral Authorities 2024 was attended by 27 countries, 35 electoral bodies, and 53 dignitaries who reviewed their experiences and challenges. The convention included panels such as the ones on “Artificial Intelligence at the Polls - Shaping the Future of Democracy and Electoral Integrity,” “Artificial Democracy - Electoral Integrity in the Age of Artificial Intelligence,” or “Promoting a Secure and Deliberative Information Ecosystem in electoral processes.” The attendees also analyzed multilateral efforts to preserve democracy, the health of the democratic system and institutions, and the promotion of secure information ecosystems in the electoral field.

The event was organized by the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States (OAS) and the TSJE, with support from the Government of Canada.