Gandhinagar, June 30, 2021, Wednesday: The 9th Edition of ReDi’s Social Media Day deliberations took place he coveted virtual event is hosted by ReDi – ‘Responsibly Digital’, a social initiative to promote responsible digital behaviour in partnership with UNICEF – YuWaah and supported by Centre for Communication of Child Rights, PDEU, Elixir Foundation, and Logically AI.
ReDi Digital Dialogue 2021 explores on Sifting fact from fiction and Social media altruism during Covid-19.
The Digital Dialogue witnessed participation of communication specialists, academicians, social media experts, IPS officers and others.
The prime aim of the event was to ensure judicious use of Social Media Day during the pandemic. Dependence on digital mediums has increased since the outbreak of COVID-19 and it is imperative that citizens act responsibly and use social media in the most effective manner. At the same time, the event will also shed a light on Fake News and the ways to stay away from misleading information and data during a global crisis.
The opening address was made by Dr. Laxmi Bhawani, Chief of UNICEF Gujarat. She said, “ Social media is undoubtedly made a difference and helped connect us with friends and families as well as provided an avenue to hone our skills or showcase our hidden talents during COVID 19. It has also a boon for students who are away from schools and were connect to their school & teachers through the online platforms. The UNICEF – YuWaah, Young Digital Volunteer Programme (YDVP) and the Young Warrior campaign are helping provide accurate information about Covid-19 and the importance of following covid appropriate behaviours.
She concluded by urging people to get correct accurate information about COVID-19, safely navigate the digital world, and make choices to not only protect their health but also the health of their family and communities.
The first-panel discussion on “Social Media Rumours, Misinformation, and Disinformation in COVID-19” had Ms. Rema Rajeshwari, IPS, Dr. Sravan Chenji, Health Officer, UNICEF, Prof Uma Shankar Pandey, Associate Professor, Mr. Sagar Kaul, VP, Logically. The panel discussion was moderated by YuWaah State lead Mr. Kumar Manish.
Ms. Rema Rajeshwari, IPS urged people to use social media with caution and wisdom. She appealed that human mind should not give into the luxuries offered by social media. She said, “ It is time for us to liberate from the clutches of biotech. There is a difference in the way we handle information in the urban and rural context. Honest issues give positive results. Intelligent persuasion by machines and technology of human mind must be stopped. We had no idea 5 years ago that fake news will become an issue of law and order in India. We live in a digital attention economy. If we expect that the social media platforms will save us, we are mistaken as their revenue model is based on more likes , shares etc”.
Dr. Sravan Chenji stressed the need for positive parenting. He said, “ Parents must ensure that the spend at least one hour a day with their children. The menace of COVID-19 has confined children within their four walls and they have had no social interactions. Parents must involve themselves with their children so that they ( children ) do not become addicted to social media day”.
Professor Uma Shankar talked about the ways social media filers information and caters to a particular user. He urged that people must be cautious in the way they feed information and deal with information. He said, “ People must rely on science and not fall for fake news and misleading information. It can cost them their lives during a global crisis”.
Mr. Sagar Kaul said that fake news created resistance amongst people to accept scientific facts. People falling for such information became vulnerable to the virus since day one of the outbreak.
The second-panel discussion on “Social Media Altruism in COVID-19” had Mr. Swaraj Shetty, Khaana Chahiye Co-founder & Lead – Digital, Ms. Moira Dawa, Communication, Advocacy and Partnership Specialist, UNICEF, RJ Harsh Bhatariya of Radio Awaj 90.8 FM Dahod, and Mr. Amit Khetan, Digital Media Expert and Founder of After First. Aakrita Srivastava moderated the session.
Moira Dawa talked about the Young Digital Volunteers Program and Young People’s Action Team that has been instrumental in spreading awareness regarding COVID-19 vaccines and COVID-19 appropriate behavior amongst people using social media. She said, “ It is important to ensure that the online space is safe for young people and adolescents. At UNICEF, we provided young people and adolescents a safe place on social media by partnership with government. 50 young people have been able to reach more than 700 000 people in Gujarat by simple activities like posts, reels , insta live etc. The volunteers have also organised video series called ‘Tales of Optimism’ on Instagram and a fact checking series related to COIVD titled ‘Shu Tamne khabar che’ i.e Did you know?.
Amit Khetan said that social media is a force multiplier. Because the future depends on how we use it. The aspect of anonymity creates risk for people which might lead to crimes. But the amount of misinformation exceeds human capacity. At the same time, also we have to be careful with funds for social cause that are circulating quite often these days on social media”.
RJ Harsh talked about his experiences during COVID-19. He used simple methods through radio to educate people on COVID-19 vaccines and ensure that everyone is safe. Residing in a tribal belt, he went about visiting homes and convincing people to believe science rather than myths on social media.
The event witnessed large scale participation from people across all age groups.
