GIJ Writers and Debators Club wins maiden inter-campus fact debate

The Writers and Debators Club of the Ghana Institute of Journalism (GIJ) won the maiden Inter-Campus Fact Debate held on Friday, the 19th of November 2021.

The debate which took place at the North Dzorwulu Campus of GIJ saw the Writers and Debators Club of GIJ face off with their colleagues from Pentecost University (PU), University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA) and Accra Technical University (ATU).

The contest comprised two rounds; during the first, the panel of judges gave each school a write-up to identify whether it was accurate news or fake news based on the story features. ATU and UPSA led with 6 points apiece at the end of the first round, whilst PU and GIJ trailed with 4 points each. During the second round, the panel of judges tested contestants' speed of fact-checking by giving each school three (3) minutes to determine whether a news article was genuine or fake. At the end of the final round saw GIJ won the contest with 11 points. PU was the 1st runner up with 9 points, UPSA was next with 8 points, whilst ATU, which took an early lead in the contest, finished with 7 points.

A member of the winning team from GIJ, David Cudjoe, appreciated the organizers for providing a platform that teaches how to fact-check. He said, "I want to thank the organizers for organizing such a competition and giving us the platform to learn how to fact-check information. I had little knowledge on how to fact-check information, but now I have learnt a lot, and I will practice it to ensure that the era of sharing fake news is a thing of the past."

The winners were given shopping vouchers, a trophy, Goethe Institute backpacks, jotters, hand bands, and badges for their awards. The 1st runners-up took home branded notebooks, Goethe Institute branded pencil cases, hand bands and badges, the second runners-up were also given branded jotters, hand bands and badges.

The inter-campus fact debate was organized by Fact Lense GH, an online media organization with the support of Goethe Institute Ghana, the cultural institute of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Speaking in an interview after the event, the Engagement Coordinator of Fact Lens GH, Nana Akua Amponsah indicated that" Fact Lense Gh Introduced the Fact Debate to create an environment that educates, entertains, and allows students to discuss issues on fact-checking in a structured contest."

Nana Akua stated further that "the Fact Debate is a part of our Media and Information Literacy for Millennials (M4M) whose aim is to help citizens, especially young people, know how to access, analyze and use information.."