The US State Department with a Project Against Disinformation in Bulgaria

The US State Department is donating a 900,000-dollar grant to help Bulgarian society acquire skills to distinguish between false information and disinformation. The project was presented yesterday afternoon in Sofia. The event coincided with the visit of the Deputy Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs at the US State Department, Elizabeth Allen.

This is the largest media literacy program ever supported by the US government in Bulgaria, Elizabeth Allen said.

"The information space is a hotly contested battleground where the free flow of accurate information is relevant to every societal challenge or problem we're trying to solve. So much is happening, so fast—artificial intelligence, emerging technologies, increased disinformation, decreasing trust in the media and threats against journalists. It is very difficult to respond to the pace. And obviously the presence of those malicious actors who purposefully abuse the information space to benefit themselves at their own expense."

The Minister of Culture Krastyo Krastev was also at the event and emphasized the importance of media literacy in the modern global world of connectivity:

"In the context of the challenges related to the spread of misinformation and attempts to influence free thinking and will of citizens, the topic of media literacy is relevant and important for the Ministry of Culture as well."

Deputy Minister of Education and Science Nataliya Miteva emphasized the increasing need to develop the skill of digital literacy against the background of today's global climate.

The media literacy project will be implemented within two years by the Poynter Institute for Media Studies together with partner organizations from Bulgaria.