Sure Anot was a campaign that aimed to combat the spread of fake news on WhatsApp among older adults in Singapore. The idea was conceived out of their common experience of older members of the team’s families frequently sending potentially false news into WhatsApp group chats.
Sure Anot fought fake news by encouraging their target audience to adopt a 3-step routine every time they receive a WhatsApp news message. The routine is called “Be Safe, Be Sure” and consists these steps – one: “Don’t forward first”, two: Ask “Sure anot?” and three: “Check ah!”
The team interviewed a doctor who reacts to fake news messages. Watch the video below.
The Highlights
The campaign actively engaged its target audience on both online and offline channels. The Sure Anot Facebook page consistently pushed out educational content and activities such as giveaways to raise awareness about the issue of fake news on WhatsApp and to promote the “Be Safe, Be Sure” routine. Sure Anot also used the platform where fake news tends to spread (mostly through WhatsApp) – the team created a group chat that enabled participants to gather messages with potentially fake news through public tip-offs. The group was moderated by campaign partner Black Dot Research, a communications agency that aided the campaign in fact-checking these messages.
Offline, the Sure Anot campaign partnered with Total Defence and Jurong Point to hold a roadshow exhibition on the days leading up to Total Defence Day. The roadshow exhibition was graced by Mr Desmond Lee, the Minister for Family and Social Development, and Mr Amrin Amin, Senior Parliamentary Secretary. Watch the highlights of the video below.
Sure Anot also partnered with RSVP Singapore to conduct anti-fake news tea sessions for their senior volunteers. The tea session dived into the past, present and future of fake news, fake news case studies and provided practical tips on how to spot a potentially fake news message on WhatsApp.
The campaign received great media attention, garnering 48 pieces of media coverage in 3 months. Newspapers that reported on Sure Anot include The Straits Times, Lianhe Zaobao, Berita Harian and Today Online. Sure Anot team was also featured on Channel 8 and Channel News Asia.
The Memories
Reflection #1 – The Challenges
Lack of funding and partners.
There were limited avenues for funding and there was a lack in public and private organisations with direct relevance and interest in fake news and information literacy. The team also hit dead-ends with pitching. At the point of pitching, it was a possibility that fake news was not perceived as an issue of public concern, therefore not a focus of private corporations’ social responsibility. Sure Anot was also rejected by government bodies that hold authority in this field, such as IMDA and Media Literacy Council.
Communication barriers with target audience.
Another notable challenge the campaign faced was communicating with older adults. It was difficult to reach them, as they preferred traditional media or face-to-face communication, but both mediums require heavy monetary resources. In addition, Sure Anot had limitations in communication through multiple languages. Many older adults are more comfortable communicating in their mother tongues. Due to the campaign timeline and funding constraints, the team was not able to make the campaign fully multilingual, but multilingual pamphlets were provided during on-the-ground outreach.
Reflection #2 – The Takeaways
Nothing beats talking to your audience.
Desktop research works, but spending the time and effort to conduct extensive research on the ground will yield more fruitful insights. Sure Anot spent over two months conducting in-depth interviews, surveys and focus groups to find out the behaviors, pain points and perceptions of their target audience.
Leveraging on earned media is valuable.
While the team was limited by monetary constraints for spots on traditional media, they prioritised pitching for earned media to reach the campaign’s target audience. With a high amount of media coverage by established outlets such as The Straits Times and Channel News Asia, the campaign’s reach was boosted greatly.
Establish touchpoints where the audience is.
Instead of expecting their target audience to find them, the team went to where the audience was. Sure Anot made sure to establish channels on uncommon platforms, such as the creation of a fake news tip-off group on WhatsApp. By conducting roadshow exhibitions in the heartlands and hosting tea sessions at a senior volunteer organisation, the campaign could be reached easily by their target audience and this made Sure Anot’s message more effective.
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