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June 26, 2024
Māori foot soldiers in disinformation war
Atereano Mateariki
Posted On June 26, 2024
Download AudioA Māori technology advisor says Māori appear to be particularly vulnerable to online disinformation.
Robyn Kamira, from Pāua Interface is co-chair of the Multi-Stakeholder Group which has just reported to the Deparment of Prime Minister and Cabinet on ways to strengthen disinformation resilience.
She says a lot of disinformation aims to sow division about trans rights, government and Māori.
Many Māori don’t have a good understanding of what is disinformation, and can be targeted by people with bad intent.
“For example the (Parliament) occupation, who was on the front line? They were Maori. So this is another form of vulnerability where people can be mobilised because they truly believe something and they are used as the footsoldiers for a campaign that may be driven from overseas,” Ms Kamira says.
The working group wants to see ongoing engagement with civil society, including extra effort to bring in iwi and Māori stakeholders.
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