The African Center for Quality Journalism and Research has revealed that 89% of Ghanaian voters are exposed to fake news as the country prepares for 2024 December polls nears.This information was gathered by the centre through a two-month research study between October and November 2024 on the topic, "Disinformation Status Report of Ghana.

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"The study was aimed at understanding the threat posed by disinformation campaigns to Ghana’s 2024 general election as well as assessing the Ghanaian electorate's knowledge of disinformation campaigns, their ability to detect fake news in the media, and ways to combat the spread of false information.

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Out of the 2,000 people nationwide who participated in the survey, close to 90% proved to be exposed to fake news amidst preparation towards December polls.<img src="

alt="" class="wp-image-730189" /> individuals who encounter fake news fail to take action, allowing its prevalence to continue, as they do not respond to fake articles when they come across them."The findings disclosed that

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about 89.2% of respondents said they have encountered fake news in the media, 6.2% said they have not, and 4.6% answered “Maybe” to the question, “Have you encountered fake news in the media?” a part of the survey indicated.The survey by the African Center for Quality Journalism and Research also found that about 64.

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4% of Ghanaians simply ignore fake news or false information they come across in the media without warning others or speaking out against it.This discovery was made when respondents were asked what actions they take upon encountering fake news in the media. "...64.4% of respondents say they ignore such news, 35.6% say they “comment on it, 19.7% say they “report it,” and 7.6% say they “send it to a friend.

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"Additionally, the survey found television to be the most trusted source of news or information, chosen by 37.4% of the respondents. Online news websites earned 26.7% trust, while social media followed closely with 26%, making them the next most trusted sources of information. Newspapers were also trusted by 6.1% of respondents, while 3.1% said they trusted information from family and friends.

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This highlights the varying levels of trust people place in different sources of information.

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