“The European Commission launched a public tender on Tuesday, with funding of five million euros, for the creation of a “European Network of Fact-Checkers”, which it claims will allow the fight against misinformation in all official languages of the EU and support the work of existing fact-checkers, according to Agerpres.According to the European Commission, this network will complement the work of the “European Fact-Checking Standards Network” (EFCSN) and the “European Digital Media Observatory” (EDMO).Along with this tender, Brussels also aims to create a system to protect fact-checkers from harassment, a database of fact-checks, and a fact-checking response capacity, including in “emergency situations”.The “European Network of Fact-Checkers” is part of the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen’s 2024-2029 policy guidelines, which introduced the so-called “European Democracy Shield” initiative. The funding of 5 million euros for this network is part of a larger funding of 47 million euros for the development of digital technologies.The tender is open until September 2nd and applicants from not only EU Member States, but also from candidate countries, as well as neighboring countries associated with the “Digital Europe Program” can participate. The European Commission has described these regions as “particularly vulnerable to disinformation and external interference, including pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives”.Read more HERE.”
