Speakers stressed the need for promoting media literacy and fighting back disinformation, here on Sunday.
A panel discussion on ‘Advancing Media Literacy and Rights Online-Offline’ was held on the second and last day of ThinkFest 2025 at Alhamra here.
Counsellor Political/Economic/Public Affairs High Commission of Canada in Pakistan Daniel Arsenault said there was a need to equip young people with the skills to critically analyse information, disseminated by all types of media.
The best approach to tackle disinformation was by boosting media literacy, opting for empowerment rather than suppression, and critical assessment rather than censorship, he added.
Digital Rights Foundation Executive Director Nighat Dad and Journalist Asad Toor said, “As the information landscape becomes more complex, everyone needs robust skills to spot disinformation; the ability to identify sources and assess their credibility and cross-check information from multiple sources to understand the context in which information is produced.
Speakers said that disinformation was a broader challenge and comprehensive and holistic approach was required to tackle it. Media literacy was best imparted through the curriculum at Primary, secondary and higher education levels, speakers added. They said that education system must prepare the youth for effective and ethical engagement with digital media and new information technologies.
Speakers concluded the debate saying it was high time to equip citizens with media and information literacy skills to eliminate extremism and hate speech.