THE International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) has condemned a recent threat by a member of Greece’s Hellenic Parliament, Kyriakos Velopoulos, to abolish Ellinika Hoaxes, a fact-checking organization in Greece via a new legislative action.
The global fact-checking body issued the statement on August 6.
The IFCN noted that such action can affect independent accountability journalism, including the work of fact-checkers across the world.
“Ellinika Hoaxes is a respected member of the international fact-checking community and should be able to continue its work without threats,” IFCN noted.
Recently, Kyriakos Velopoulos who is also the president of the Greek Solution political party, repeatedly made a series of threats to abolish Ellinika Hoaxes through legislative interventions he said he intends to introduce.
The attacks include a statement from the parliamentary floor in which he declared, “We will abolish the anti-Hellenic Hoaxes because they fight against the true informing of Greeks.”
Ellinika Hoaxes has stated that the threat directly contradicts Greece’s constitution, which guarantees freedom of speech and the press.
IFCN director, Angie Drobnic Holan said that it is preposterous to claim that the organization which is a verified IFCN member and a reputable fact-checking organization is fighting against accurate information.
“Such statements have no other purpose than to attack fact-checking and lay the foundation for stifling of the free press. We condemn them in the strongest terms,” she said.
Ellinika Hoaxes has been a longstanding signatory to the Code of Principles, receiving its first independent assessment and successful approval in 2019, the IFCN stated.
It noted that fact-checkers voluntarily sign on to the Code of Principles and go through a verification process to prove they meet universal standards of transparency, independence and methodology.
The Code of Principles is administered by the IFCN, a global community of fact-checking organizations based at the Poynter Institute, a U.S.-based nonprofit organization established in 1975 that advocates for independent journalism.
The Code of Principles process involves an assessment of the fact-checking organization by an independent academic or media expert familiar with the local context. The assessment is then verified by the IFCN advisory board. The advisory board is made up of leaders of independent fact-checking organizations from around the world who have been selected by their peers.
“The IFCN, which was established in 2015, is dedicated to supporting press freedom and fact-checkers globally, including our signatories.
“Ellinika Hoaxes deserves to continue publishing its explanatory journalism and fact-checks that hold the government, political parties and candidates accountable without threat of reprisal,” the statement noted.
Nurudeen Akewushola is a fact-checker with FactCheckHub. He has authored several fact checks which have contributed to the fight against information disorder. You can reach him via [email protected] and @NurudeenAkewus1 via Twitter.
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