Dijana Machal, President of the Croatian Library Association, Martyn Wade, Chair, FAIFE, Davorka Psenica, Member, FAIFE

Martyn Wade, Chair of IFLA’s Advisory Committee on Freedom of Access to Information and Freedom of Expression, delivered a speech on Fake News and Libraries in Zagreb. The occasion was the 2018 Round Table on Freedom of Access to Information organised by the Croatian Library Association.

Libraries have long both campaigned for free access to information. In parallel, they have also argued that this access there is a need for skills to get the best out of the information received.

The space and support provided by libraries is ideal for helping people navigate through the huge amount of news, commentary and analysis now available. The phenomenon of ‘fake news’ is only the latest reason to underline this point.

At the Croatian Library Association’s Round Table on Access to Information, the Chair of the IFLA Advisory Committee on Freedom of Access to Information and Freedom of Expression, Martyn Wade, gave a speech about what libraries could bring to the discussion on ‘fake news’.

The speech sets out the context in which libraries approach fake news, and the specific strengths they bring. It also highlights the limitations of different policy approaches, including the work still needed to improve education. 

You can download the speech as a pdf, and read IFLA’s Statement on Fake News.