RSF initiatives at core of cooperation between Brazil and France on defending information
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is delighted that, during French President Emmanuel Macron’s recent state visit to Brazil, two RSF initiatives – the Partnership for Information and Democracy and the Journalism Trust Initiative (JTI) – emerged as core components of the cooperation between the two countries on combatting disinformation.
“Democracy is threatened by extremism all over the world,” Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said at a joint press conference with Macron on 28 March. “Denial of politics and the spread of hate speech are increasingly frequent and worrying. This is why Brazil joined the French initiative of the Partnership on Information and Democracy in 2023 and will continue to work to promote and protect the circulation of reliable information. It is time to promote a real multilateral debate around the global governance of artificial intelligence.”
A total of 52 countries around the world have so far signed up to the Partnership for Information and Democracy (PID), an intergovernmental agreement launched by RSF and France in 2019 with the aim of establishing democratic principles in the global information and communication arena and promoting public policies to put them into effect.
Recognising that it is important for the public to be able to trust credible journalism – as false information continues to proliferate and new risks linked to generative artificial intelligence emerge – the declaration of cooperation between France and Brazil envisages working together to implement projects to strengthen the economic viability of trustworthy media.
The joint statement on cooperation in the fight against disinformation refers specifically to the JTI – the Journalism Trust Initiative – which RSF is promoting as an international trustworthy journalism standard and certification mechanism designed to strengthen the visibility and sustainability of media outlets that adhere to basic journalistic methods and principles.
“Brazil's involvement in the Partnership for Information and Democracy and recognition of the Journalism Trust Initiative (JTI) are excellent news for the right to information. The concrete solutions promoted by RSF had already found a very favourable response among many Brazilian media and information stakeholders. President Lula's push for their implementation consolidates our efforts to promote online information integrity.
Brazil and France also reaffirmed the need to lay the foundations of global digital governance with a view to safeguarding the right of access to reliable, independent and quality information online. During Brazil’s presidency of the G20, which ends in December, Macron and Lula intend to promote a common agenda on the subject. They will also support the UN secretary-general’s work to develop a code of conduct for reliable information on digital platforms, and a global digital compact.
Deloire will participate in a G20 side event on 1 May in São Paulo dedicated to the promotion of online information integrity. Maria Ressa, the journalist who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2021, UN under secretary-general Melissa Fleming, and representatives of G20 member states are among those who are also due to participate.
