Robusto Communications News Today

A growing trend of domestic political actors deploying targeted disinformation schemes requires expanded fact-checking capacity in Africa.

On January 8, 2020, Facebook removed 32 pages, 220 user accounts, 59 groups, and 139 Instagram profiles working to promote Ugandan president and National Resistance Movement (NRM) leader Yoweri Museveni. The accounts of at least six government employees and two PR firms were involved in the network taken down by Facebook for using fake and duplicate accounts and misleading pages to target public debate ahead of the 14 January presidential election. According to a Facebook statement, they remove...

By Tessa Knight for DFRLab• 12 January 2021 Supporters of Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, otherwise known as Bobi Wine, run from tear gas fired by police during his presidential campaign in Kampala, Uganda 30 November 2020. The Ugandan Presidential Elections are due to take place on the 14 January 2021 and have so far been marred by violence with 45 supporters of Bobi Wine killed by security forces last week whilst protesting the arrest of Ssentamu during an election rally. EPA-EFE/STR Facebook...