Association of Asia-Pacific News Agencies (OANA)'s 51st conference kicks off in Istanbul

ISTANBUL (AA) - The 51st Association of Asia-Pacific News Agencies (OANA) Conference, which Anadolu hosts, kicked off on Monday at the agency's Istanbul office.

Anadolu's President & CEO, Serdar Karagoz, delivered the conference's opening speech.

In his speech, Karagoz emphasized that Anadolu, which was founded during the Turkish War of Independence, is one of the news agencies that set the agenda for the region and the world with its services in 13 languages, 1800 employees and offices in 39 countries.

Pointing out that OANA has been an influential association of news agencies with 44 members from 35 countries since its establishment in 1961, Karagoz said, "While determining the OANA conference's theme this year, we focused on disinformation and strategies to combat it. According to a research conducted by Oxford University in 37 countries in 2018, the country most exposed to disinformation is Türkiye, with 49 percent."

"We are also observing that Asia-Pacific countries are also heavily exposed to disinformation. Therefore, this year's theme of the conference was determined as 'Cooperation Among News Agencies on Fighting Disinformation'," he added.

Pointing out that Anadolu established the "AA Fact Check" last year to combat disinformation, Karagoz also stated that the line focuses on controversial content in digital media and provides approved and verified information to the public.

Karagoz further said that Türkiye's Directorate of Communications is also waging a fight through the Center for Combating Disinformation and playing a leading role.

The CEO also stated that journalists are going through a difficult process due to the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict and that he sent a letter to all regional news agency associations for the safety of their colleagues in the region.

- Emphasis on cooperation to prevent fake news

In his speech at the opening, OANA President and IRNA Director General Ali Naderi mentioned that examples of disinformation have been openly displayed in the international media in recent weeks and stated that events such as the claim that 40 Israeli children were killed and Israel's refusal to accept the hospital attack in Gaza are prime examples.

Naderi stated that "some politicians and warmongers" do not hesitate to use artificial intelligence as well as disinformation.

Emphasizing that agencies can cooperate to prevent the spread of fake news, Naderi said that misinformation becomes a serious problem during periods of epidemic, migration and economic crisis.

"At this event in Istanbul, we want to examine and highlight the role of news agencies in combating misinformation," Naderi said.

The conference will continue with sessions titled "Areas of Cooperation for News Agencies in the Fight against Disinformation" and "The Role of News Agencies in the Age of Disinformation."