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Lai Mohammed, minister of information and culture, has opined that the spread of fake news may cause World War III, as he appeared before the Nigerian house of reps.
Speaking on Monday, October 25, when he appeared before the House of Representatives committee on information, national orientation, ethics and values to defend his ministry’s 2022 budget, Mohammed said the manner in which information is disseminated today has drastically changed from the time of television and radio sets to the use of social media which can be used to spread ‘fake news.’
“The people today, they don’t read newspapers, they don’t watch television — it’s social media. And it is most expensive; the most unseen enemy, they are there every moment,” he said.
“With fake news today and misinformation — I have always said here that the next world war will be caused by fake news.
“You can see even the US that use to pride itself on the freedom of the press is now questioning the role of the social media.”
Recently, the federal government has pushed for legislation to bring social and online media under control.
At a public hearing in June, Mohammed asked the house of representatives to amend the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) act to empower the agency to regulate social and online media in addition to other channels of broadcasting.
In August, Mohammed said the federal government will not rest until social media platforms are regulated.
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