Bangladesh NGO’s Network for Radio and Communication (BNNRC) is organizing a two-day-long workshop at the Begum Rokeya Auditorium, RDRS, Rangpur on Fact-Checking and Verification Techniques on Health Journalism for an in-depth reporting on important and complex health issues to enhance the professional skills of journalists with the support of The Asia Foundation on 16 & 17 April 2022. Today is the first day of this training program.

Mr. Md. Mehedul Karim, ppm-Seba, Additional Police Commissioner, Rangpur Metropolitan Police was present as the Chief Guest at the inaugural session of the workshop. He said in his speech that Fact-Checking is very important we are going through the pandemic Covid-19 under the situation for countering misinformation and disinformation authentication or fact-checking of the information is very crucial. BNNRC has undertaken a very timely initiative. The hope the journalists in different districts of the Rangpur Division will be benefitted from the training.

In the inaugural session AHM Bazlur Rahman, CEO of BNNRC outlined the aims, objectives and topics of the workshop. He highlights the challenges of fast-changing realities, the speed and flexibility of its multifaceted impact and the opportunities it offers, as well as the importance of building one's capacity on new topics.

Mr. Md. Jewel Ahmed, Rangpur Bureau Chief, Banglavision welcomed the journalists and hoped that the training will provide in-depth knowledge about Fact-Checking and Verification Techniques for the journalist not only on health issues but also support them in all other issues.

The purpose of the workshop is to enhance the capacity of journalists to create and publish objective, insightful and influential news on health management; Encourage journalists to acquire knowledge and skills in modern techniques in data verification and presentation in creating neutral and balanced health reports. A total of 24 journalists of the Rangpur Division working with national dailies, online news portals, and television channels are participating in the workshop.

At the beginning of the training Mr. Abu Rushd Md. Ruhul Amin, Senior News Editor, Banglavision, Dhaka, is facilitating the training program.

The training workshop focuses on health journalism in the current context; reliable sources of information in health journalism; information verification techniques and media monitoring techniques for misinformation, disinformation, and mal-information in health reporting published through social media; and, promoting health governance in Bangladesh. 

It is hoped that the workshop will enable journalists to be more diligent and sensitive in verifying information to produce impartial and balanced health reports. Besides, the journalists will be encouraged to use various modern techniques in presenting the data collected for the report.

BNNRC is in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) accredited with World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), SDGs Media Compact of the United Nations, and UN WSIS prize winner 2016, Champion 2017, 2019, 2020, and 2021. BNNRC's approach to media development is both knowledge-driven and context-sensitive, and it takes into account the challenges and opportunities created by the rapidly changing media environment in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.