With the aim of protecting the new generation from fake newsThe implementation of the program “Critical Readers” in 30 Gymnasiums and High Schools (Athens, Thessaloniki, Kastoria, Chania, Patras, Larissa, Heraklion, etc.) begins in October (Athens, Thessaloniki, Kastoria, Chania, Patras, Larissa, Heraklion, etc.)

Fake news and misinformation have evolved into an increasingly visible worldwide phenomenon. The social media and their personalization tools they offer have made it easier to spread false stories. Even young people, familiar with technology, find it difficult to locate the manufactured news. At the same time, as the European Parliament points out, false news and coordinated misinformation campaigns have evolved in recent years into political intervention tools. The European elections of June 2024 and several electoral clashes in the Member States have been targeted by information manipulation. According to Eurobarometer data presented in the fall of 2024 (https://europa.eu/eurobarometer/surveys/detail/3215), 82% of Europeans agree that the existence of news or information that distorts reality or is even false. At the same time, 77% of Europeans agree that the existence of news or information that distorts reality or are even false is a problem in their country.

The 12 -month pilot program was presented by the Minister of Education of Religions and Sports Sofia Zacharakis and the Deputy Minister under the Prime Minister and government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis in recent days during the TIF. In the coming weeks, Mr. Marinakis and Mrs Zacharakis will visit schools In Attica and the Region where they will present the program to students.

The presentation at the Pavilion of the General Secretariat for Communication and Information was only the beginning as it has already launched an online campaign with video and audiovisual material on social media and will create special material for the pilot program, which will be distributed in schools.

What does the program predict

Through the actions of the program students aged 12-18 years they will have the opportunity to cultivate news literacy, critical thinking and digital responsibility to be able to recognize and reject fake news. To achieve this, the news links to lessons such as history, sociology and language will be made. At the same time, it is envisaged to engage students in reporters, editors, photographers and multimedia creators.

Implementation of the program provides for the training of both teachers and journalists participating in it.

In the context of the program, there will be interactive workshops with themes such as:

– Fake news recognition and treatment

– Critical use of artificial intelligence in information (how to identify errors, misleading uses and algorithmic distortions)

– Protection of Personal Data and Digital Security

– Understanding media ethics and the role of journalism

The innovation of the program lies in the fact that for the first time a systematic program of news education is implemented in Greece, with a combination of journalism, artificial intelligence and state education, which, among other things, offers practical tools to stand up to over-information, avoiding information and non-critics, Methods (production of podcasts, articles, videos, camps) and promotes reading and analysis of printed and digital type, enhancing the readability and viability of the type.

In June 2026, a World Congress will be held in Athens, with representatives from international universities and organizations, with the aim of making Greece as a hub in the education of news literacy.

According to the General Secretariat for Information in its announcement, “with the program” by cultivating critical readers “we give our children skills that combine responsible information, critical use of artificial intelligence and protecting their digital identity. We are preparing tomorrow’s citizens to actively participate in public dialogue, to protect their rights and build a democracy resistant to misinformation. “

The ability of children to distinguish the truth from misinformation is more important than ever, during the presentation of the program, the Minister of Education, Religions and Sports, Sofia Zacharakis, stressing: “I am very proud that as a ministry Auditors of the reality that surrounds them. “

“We want to bring newspapers, the right information, the internet documentation, everywhere, to schools. The goal is to open the dialogue in your classes, your homes, with your own people, to your friends, and where the trend now is, what some people create, the “no” or the rejection, the tendency to be controlled, controlled by all us, parties, people, actors, those who have public, ” Marinakis.