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One of the groundbreaking innovations by an African media organisation in fighting the canker of mis/disinformation is the DUBAWA Chatbot. The all-important fact-checking mobile application was developed by the Innovations team of the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID)/DUBAWA and was officially launched in 2024. The App has received reviews in different African countries and beyond, including—Nigeria, The Gambia, Senegal, and Ghana, nations—where DUBAWA has operated over the years, producing fact-checks, media literacy, and explainer articles for the good of all.
DUBAWA ChatBot Application
Since it was launched, fact-checkers in Sierra Leone have begun to find life in fact-checking a lot easier. With just a little Hi and a viral question, the chatbot can provide on-the-spot information about any issue of interest. It will then provide information on credible websites and fact-checking organisations that may already have fact-checked the information. But the bot was built even more for the ordinary Sierra Leonean, Nigerian, Ghanaian, Liberian, etc, who could easily fall prey to mis/disinformation.
So, how does the DUBAWA Chatbot work?
The DUBAWA Chatbot App is an electronic mobile application that helps people fact-check or verify viral claims through the power of WhatsApp, one of the biggest spreaders of misinformation.
The application is simple and easy to use for anyone with basic literacy. You don’t have to be tech-savvy; all you need to do is have a phone or laptop and an access to the bot’s attention. The chatbot considers key phrases/words, symbols, and signs to include in the ‘type text’ space to get what you ask from the chatbot app.
Here’s how to get started with using the DUBAWA ChatBot:
- Click on the link to access the bot
- Install the app on your phone, computer, or Chromebook
- After installing the app, try to initiate or create a conversation with the word “Hello/Hi,”, and you’ll receive a response from the app
The chatbot performs one of four assignments at a time
- Verify a claim
- Get the latest fact-checks
- Learn about DUBAWA
- Report a claim
However, if you can’t click the provided link, you can scan the QR code below. This will take you to a page where you can quickly fact-check your claims.
Screengrab of the page you will go to when you open your phone’s camera to the QR code — Image Source: DUBAWA / Fayia J. Moseray
The above page is where the scan QR code will take you. Next, you will have to type in your claim in the “type space” and “send,” and your claim will be verified.
NB: Please don’t copy or forward the claim/text into the text space; instead, type the words/text for yourself, and you’ll get the answer you seek for your claim!
With the DUBAWA ChatBot innovation, fact-checking has been made easier for people with little or no superior technical knowledge about fighting disinformation.
Conclusion `
Like other mobile apps, the DUBAWA ChatBot Mobile verification application not only helps journalists but also serves as a game changer for researchers/fact-checkers, students, and citizens who want to dig for accurate information without scratching their heads about where to go for accurate information.
