The Control of Information.

How the rich and powerful shape the media and control your mind. By Dr. Judith Brown

Fact checking in Africa – part 2.

“If we had allowed things to drift, everything would have gone from bad to worse. Nasser would have become a kind of Moslem Mussolini, and our friends in Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and even Iran would gradually have been brought down. His efforts would have spread westwards, and Libya and North Africa would have been brought under his control.” Anthony Eden, British Prime Minister, 1955-1957.

Government surveillance in North Africa.

As in the Middle East, North African governments have practised surveillance of their citizens for many decades. For example, in Egypt the Law on Combating Information Technology Crimes of 2018 and the Personal Data Protection Law of 2020 were passed. These have strengthened existing surveillance practices. Nevertheless, the monitoring of online activities, such as emails, surfing the internet, phone conversations, and social media, has been practiced for many years, even before these two laws were passed [1] here. Three large North African countries, Libya, Somalia and Sudan, currently are beset with conflict, which is inevitably associated with the control of information and people. Some of this historical surveillance, and current conflict, is related to North Africa’s relationship with the West, and the past colonisation of these countries by European powers.

This form of control has now been supplemented by the emergence of Western style fact checking practices, a practice that offers a new layer of control. This report reveals the emergence of the influence of the Censorship Industrial Complex in North Africa. As in the rest of the world, there is likely to be more activity in this region than has been located for this study.

The infiltration into North Africa.

The countries included in North Africa for this report are Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Mali, Morocco, Somalia, Sudan, Tunisia, and Western Sahara. In 2023, most of the fact checking in this region for Facebook was undertaken by the French newswire AFP, fact checking in eight countries, and the Jordanian platform Fatabyyano, that fact checked four countries. Facebook had a contract with Pesacheck for third-party fact checking in Mali. In addition, the online news website Misbar fact checked in North Africa since its launch in 2019 [2] here. This location of Misbar is unclear but it is owned by a Qatari company. In 2021 a long-established Beirut based online news platform developed a fact checking platform, Arab Media Fact Check, that monitors the Arab media across North Africa [3] here. There has also been fact checking reports in this region by MEMRI (Middle East Media Research Institute) for decades; this is an American not-for-profit that is staffed by ex-Israeli intelligence officers. MEMRI’s reports are usually accurate but selected to suit a pro-Israeli perspective [4] here.

In 2023, there was limited evidence found of Western style fact checking platforms in North Africa, although they probably existed but in an embryonic form. Most fact check groups that were found then were small, local, and dealing with local issues, for example, two small fact check platforms were found in Egypt run by volunteers, only operating on a Facebook page. Misbar was active in Tunisia. It is difficult to locate fact check platforms until they have joined Western organisations, such as the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN), or the Credibility Coalition, or unless they have produced a website in English. These are signs of the maturing of Western-style censorship. By 2025, early signs of infiltration of the North African discourses started to appear, with several new Western sponsored fact checking platforms appearing in this region.

In 2023, an Egyptian platform, the Akhbar Meter (Newsmeter), became a verified signatory of the IFCN. Akhbar Meter was launched in 2018, developed by Dr. Haitham Mouniss as a research project whilst studying in UK. It is currently owned by a European company called E.Square, a non-profit organisation registered in Germany that manages several development projects in cooperation with the EU [5] here. The Akhbar Meter was the first media observatory in Egypt; it manages fact checking for ten Egyptian media companies. Egyptian news sites are ranked by the observatory according to what is judged by them to be their professionalism and credibility. There are nine staff listed on the Akhbar Meter website. In 2025, the only funding listed are two relatively small grants from the African Mitre News Team and from Google and YouTube [6] here. Akhbar Meter states that it undertakes fact checking operations; however, the only items found on the website appear to be news stories rather than fact checks. The fact checking operations may be limited to the news outlets that it partners.

Another new fact check platform in Egypt is Tafnied [7] here. This fact check platform is affiliated to Africa Check, the American Global Forum for Media Development (GFMD), and the Arab Network of Information Verifiers (AFCN) (also known as the Arab Fact Check Network). From examination of the website, Tafnied appears to also have links to the Egyptian government. The only other country that has been located where the government has its own fact check platform is the UK.

Sudan also has a fact check platform recently registered with the IFCN, Beam Reports, that was founded in 2021 [8] here. On the IFCN site it is stated that this Sudanese fact check platform has gone underground to avoid confrontation with authorities [9] here. Very little information about this organisation is available on the website, although funders are listed as the Thomson Foundation, USAID, Chemonics, and Avaaz – all Western sources. Many of the fact checks on the site are linked to the conflict in Sudan. Without an understanding of the local politics, it is impossible to evaluate these verifications.

Another new fact check platform has been located in Sudan, associated with the online news platform Sudan Tribune, although the fact checking page appears more like news reports. For example, it states that a South Sudanese official denies statements made by a Sudanese politician, or that a military official denies reports of victory claimed by one party to the conflict. These do not seem to have rigour in analysis, but are merely reporting denials made by those in authority, whose opinions differed from those who made the original statements [10] here.

Although no website could be located in April 2025, a new fact check platform has been launched in Mali called Tabale Kunkan, that is funded by the Canadian government. The project states it intends to build community resistance to misinformation in Mali [11] here. The project is training key actors from government, defence, and security. The aims are to ‘prevent and manage rumours and misinformation’. It is also training 75 media workers and influencers.

Another new fact check platform has appeared in Tunisia, organised and funded by the Dutch charity Hivos. Hivos has been working with the National Union of Tunisian Journalists (SNJT) since 2021 to set up a fact-checking platform called Tunifact [12] here, that operates in French and Arabic. Activities include training journalists, and between 2021 and 2023 the platform conducted 1395 fact checks and 84 in-depth analyses, to tackle, what it calls, fake news and disinformation. A Hivos report states that Tunifact is Integrated with the Arab Fact-Checkers Network (AFCN) and the Africa Check project Africa Facts Network, and it has also formed partnerships with four national radio stations [13] here. This form of networking between fact check organisations across boundaries helps to control narrative. Editor-in-chief of Tunifact, Yasmine Dakhli, stated: “No one can deny that the media landscape in Tunisia is full of mis/disinformation”.

The need to tackle mis and disinformation is frequently cited as the reason for starting a Western-style fact checking initiative. For example, a report released by Misbar describes Morocco as “Among Top Countries Targeted by Fake News” [14] here. The BBC criticises the Egyptian government for arresting dissidents for ‘fake news’ – ironically, as the same type of events have happened in the UK and elsewhere, with no BBC criticism [15] here and here.

An online media site (Nawaat) in Tunisia claims that there is a growing appetite for fact checking in that country. The website operates a fact checking system that began in the Covid era [16] here. The website names its funders as Denish, Norwegian and Swedish government organisaitons. Another online news platform in Tunisia is Business News, that has a fact check platform called BN Check. Although the website states that this is a Tunisian company, the head office is listed as Sarajevo [17] here.

No Western-style fact check platforms were found in Morocco, but a research paper in Researchgate describes the emergence of fact checking practices in Morocco. The language used in this report indicates that fact checking practices are integrating into the control of information in Morocco, and established censorship organisations such as the Poynter Institute in USA are described as role models in the paper studied. The paper also described the emergence of media literacy training [18] here. Additionally, Western Sahara which was formerly occupied by Spain has been under Moroccan control since 1975. No evidence of fact checking was found in Western Sahara. Moroccan sovereignty over this territory has been recognised by the USA since 2000, as part of a deal that included Moroccan normalising relations with Israel. Hence, the fact check industry may no longer see Western Sahara as an independent country.

A fact check platform was found in Algeria, established in 2018, initially only operating on social media sites. Algeria Check claims it was the first fact check platform in Algeria and Morocco area; it now has a website in Arabic and English [19] here. No information was found about its funding. It was one of four websites that were selected to check information on the Algerian and Tunisian elections, which may have been one income source [20] here. This fact checking project was initiated by the AFCN and Africa Check, with the support of the Google News Initiative (GNI).

Libya is a particular case that illustrates Western involvement in its internal politics and the adoption of Western style fact checking. Despite longstanding Western interference in its affairs, Libya was a sovereign country until the Arab uprising in 2011. In a report by Gamal M. Selim, Assistant Professor of Port Said University and the British University of Egypt, Selim states that in Libya, the United States managed to re-orient the revolutionary process at the time of the “Arab Spring”. American interference changed this from being one of non-violent resistance to an all-out war launched by the local opposition and Western powers ,which resulted in the destruction of the main structures of the state and its power [21] here. Libya has not been able to overcome the impact of this devastating event and remains in a state of internal war. As in all modern wars, social media posts by those with Libyan interests show differing perspectives on the conflict.

In 2021, the German foundation linked to a national media outlet, DWAkadamie (DWA), announced that it would introduce fact checking into Libya in order to reduce ‘the media war’. A DWA article written in 2021 describes various Libyan influencers that are giving out what it called inaccurate information that it claimed to be fuelling the conflict. In order to solve this, in 2020 DWA introduced fact checking to the Libyan media. They trained 40 journalists from Libyan TV, Online and Radio stations in fact checking techniques and the use of fact checking tools. This was organised by DWA and funded by the EU [22] here.

Whilst the conflict has not ceased, and no doubt influencers still post online messages, DWA claims success measured by the growth of fact checking in Libya. They name tscly.org that works with a dozen fact checkers who have fact checked 98,000 social media posts. Another named platform is Facto.ly run by the Tripoli based Libya Center for Freedom of Press (LCFP). The LCFP website gives no details of funding, but interestingly on its website is a report that criticises a Libyan decree dated 2022 that is a form of online censorship of Libya’s audiovisual media [23] here. Interestingly, this mirrors censorship legislation that has been enacted in Europe and UK.

Whilst tscly.org and Facto.ly could not be located on an internet search, another Libyan online news site which incorporates fact checking was found, Libya Update. This was founded in 2021 and reports news from major cities in Libya. Whilst Libya Update states that fact checking is the responsibility of its journalists, it also states that it will use independent fact checkers as necessary. No details of its funding appears on its website [24] here.

The BBC’s charity Media Action has also been involved in Libya’s media [25] here. Media Action if funded by the UK, the EU, and the US governments. Investigations have revealed that it operates to undermine stability in target countries rather than to promote independence [26] here. For example, Juliette Harkin, former BBC Media Action Project Manager who had worked in Syria stated:

“We [BBC Media Action] worked in 2004 with individuals within the [Syrian] ministry who wanted change and tried to get them to be the drivers of that. All media development work that has been done within Syria has, in my opinion, been predicated upon this idea that there can be change from within - you have an authoritarian regime and you find who the reformers are within that [regime] and work with them” [27] here.

In fact, Media Action worked in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Tunisia and the Palestinian Territories, all countries that are the target of Western powers for regime change or control of populations [28] here. The citizens of these countries have not had improvement in their lives due to the interference by Western agencies such as the BBC. Media Action did not work in countries such as Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt and Kuwait that are all authoritarian regimes with evidence of repressive tactics, but they are allies of the West.

Media Action was working in Libya and Algeria in 2021, but based in Tunisia, at the time when Libya and Algeria were planning a national election and also as COVID-19 vaccines were being distributed. It helped to launch an online platform called El Kul. BBC Media Action stated that ‘El Kul can play a role in providing independent, accurate and trusted information…’; it could signpost audiences to what was named as ‘reputable sources of information on these themes and other sensitive topics [29] here. Media Action claims El Kul is one of Libya’s top five most active Facebook pages. However, on issues such as Covid-19 injectables, BBC followed the narrative of governments and pharmaceutical companies and did not act as an honest broker when reporting in the UK, and it was likely to have operated in the same fashion in North Africa.

In Somalia, the Federation of Somali Journalists (FESOJ) states it is actively training journalists [30] here. FESOJ accepts funding for this project from its partnerships with EU Delegation in Somalia and other EU diplomatic missions, UN Mission in Somalia (UNSOM),UNESCO and UNDP, Free Press Unlimited, the Finish Foundation for Media Development (VIKES) and Doha Center for Media Development. These are regular funders of censorship activities. Not surprisingly, a new fact check platform has emerged in Somalia, Fact Check Horn [31] here. Its vision is to be the leading fact-checking organisation in the Horn of Africa, which includes Somalia, Somaliland, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Djibouti. Currently, it only has limited number of fact checks on its platform, indicating that it is a very recent entry to the fact check network. It also states it intends to moderate content in countries surrounding Somalia, including Kenya, Sudan, South Sudan, Rwanda and Uganda. There is no information about its partners or funders on its website, but Fact Check Horn states that it adheres to the standards of the IFCN [32] here. When the website was examined, the language used was English with no African language reports available.

Conclusion.

In Sub-Saharan Africa we saw a developed censorship industry in the style of Western content moderation, with a number of extensive supporting organisations, including think tanks, NGOs, media observatories, and networking groups. From this emerged a small number of very large fact check platforms that cross African borders, supplemented by a small number of national fact check sites. This has created a comprehensive censorship network that is aligned to its Western partners though organisations such as the IFCN. This African network of censorship is almost exclusively funded by Western governments, Western philanthropy, and Western corporates.

It is interesting to compare this to the situation found in North Africa where the shoots of Western style censorship have only recently started to appear. Almost totally with Western money and with Western encouragement, fact check platforms have been developed. Initial claims of those who encourage such activity, such as the German DWAkadamie and the British BBC Media Action, is to increase democracy and reduce conflict. However, ultimately success is only measured by counting the number of fact check platforms that start operating in the target countries.

The North African populations have long been surveilled and information controlled by their governments; some of this censorship may have been in response to Western encroachment on their sovereignty. However, it can be seen that a new layer of control is now being implemented, such control leads to favouring the preferred narratives of Western funders. The global fact check industry has no product to sell and relies on donations for its existence, and if it did not follow donors requirements, funding would be withdrawn. This applies in North Africa as much as elsewhere. Inevitably, this will further reduce sovereignty and local control of narratives as these new content moderation organisations mature and grow. This is a new form of colonialisation through the control of minds. As described by Anthony Eden, a former UK prime minister, who knows what would happen if North African nations were allowed to rule themselves?