Sanef warns about false news
"We ask that greater attention be given to the source of news before simply retweeting or sharing."
The SA national editor’s forum (Sanef) has threatened action against fake news sites masquerading as credible news sources.
The criticism comes in the wake of a false story about the death of Archbishop Desmond Tutu on Monday.
Sanef said in a statement on Tuesday, that false news was highly damaging and hurtful to those involved and their families.
“Sanef notes and strongly condemns yesterday’s false story about the well-being of Tutu which has done the rounds on social media,” said Sanef.
The forum urged social media users to pay attention to sources of news before sharing with other users.
“We ask that greater attention be given to the source of news before simply retweeting or sharing.”
And it also warned publishers against publishing unverified information from unreliable sites.
“We call on the publishers to desist from publishing these false and inflammatory stories with immediate effect as it is grossly irresponsible.”
Sanef said it would look for an appropriate course of action to take against such fake sites.
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