Differentiating between accurate, inaccurate news crucial

There is a need to differentiate between accurate and inaccurate information, as everyday people - due to the development of modern telecommunications - have become editors and journalists, suggested a media expert. Richard Hornik, Director of Overseas Partnership Programs for the Center for News Literacy at Stony Brook University in New York, highlighted the importance of journalistic ethics and ideals when dealing with the mammoth amount of information, some of which is difficult to determine whether true or false. However, in a forum hosted by the Arab Media Forum in collaboration with the US Embassy in Kuwait, he said it was important for younger generations to be able to differentiate between this information. Hornik, who has worked as an editor in several internationally-renowned media firms including Times magazine, noted to a training course, organised by his university, aimed at supporting critical thinking. This course has been presented at a number of international universities in the US and China, and focuses on the need for in-depth analysis of information we receive on a daily basis, either from conventional journalism or modern sources of information, like social networking websites, he said. Critical thinking contributes in a direct manner to increasing public awareness, he said, and raises the level of personal journalism, which could at some point in the future become the major source of news if people were to put their trust in it, he said. The absence of critical thinking amongst the youth is not restricted to one region, but currently affects many parts of the world, he suggested.