As part of efforts to tackle the spread of fake news and misinformation around the COVID-19 pandemic, the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) is expanding the scope of its fact-checking project (www.fact-checkghana.com).
In line with this, the MFWA is seeking qualified and experienced journalists and other individuals as fact-checkers for a four-month period (May till August 31, 2020). Fact-checkers will be contracted on stringing basis. Ideal candidates must be familiar with the concept of fake news and misinformation, be familiar with the use of verification tools and strategies, be familiar with different sources of relevant policy, economic and health data, have exceptional analytical and report writing capacity, be able to meet tight reporting deadlines and be able to work under pressure.
Responsibilities:
- To conduct regular fact-checking on claims, promises and statements about COVID-19 that are eligible for fact-checking and to produce fact-checked reports about such claims and statements using an approved fact-checking instrument on which fact-checkers will be trained.
- To subject all fact-checked reports to acceptable fact-checking principles outlined during the fact-checking training and in line with principles set out in the fact-checking instrument for the project.
- To co-operate and support other fact-checkers to jointly fact-check complex or complicated subject matters or claims which may require the effort of more than one fact-checker;
Education: An advanced (Masters) degree or a first degree, diploma (with several years of experience) is required.
Experience: Candidates should have a minimum of three years’ experience in print, online or data journalism; or research, data and policy analysis including report writing; or digital analytics; or other relevant fields. A track record of strong writing skills, analysis and report writing, will be an additional advantage.
How to apply:
Please submit your CV with contact information of at least two references to recruitments[@]mfwa.org using “Application for Fact-CheckGhana” as the subject of your email.
Deadline: Applications must be received by close of day on Friday April 24, 2020. Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.