Investigating Disinformation Networks

Thursday 09 October 2025

2:00 PM (UTC+8)

Online

Organised by AFP

This event has ended. The replay will be available soon.

Description

Join us for a behind-the-scenes look at AFP's investigation into disinformation networks about the South China Sea, which won the top award at this year’s Global Fact-Checking Summit.

Led by AFP’s digital investigations journalists in Manila and Bangkok, the report exposed a cross-border web of social media pages and websites spreading disinformation about the disputed region. 

As the territorial dispute intensifies, corresponding disinformation campaigns have grown more coordinated, blending political agendas with commercial incentives. These operations are often designed to influence public opinion and reinforce certain geopolitical narratives. By deploying disinformation online, these networks manipulate audiences and amplify their reach through algorithms, engagement farming, and coordinated inauthentic behaviour.

This webinar will detail how AFP conducted the investigation into the cross-border money-making operation, and will equip journalists with practical techniques and tools for verification and enterprise reporting.

During this live session, we will discuss:

Techniques to trace the origins of coordinated disinformation campaigns
How false narratives take root and spread online
Cross-border methods to verify suspicious content and visual material circulating on social media
How to harness OSINT (Open Source Intelligence) tools to craft original stories that go beyond the surface