No, RMIT FactLab is not set to rig the Voice referendum

^{By Renee Davidson}

Anti-Voice social media users are once again spreading disinformation about the upcoming Voice referendum’s electoral process, this time saying that RMIT FactLab is set to rig it. 

Posts shared on the messaging service, Telegram, contain an image of the RMIT FactLab logo above a caption that reads: “New ‘Fact Checking’ Group Set to Rig Voice Referendum”. 

But the claim that RMIT FactLab is being used by the Yes campaign to rig the referendum is false.

RMIT FactLab is an independent fact-checking organisation based at RMIT University. It is responsible for debunking viral misinformation and disinformation on social media and providing media literacy training. 

Its researchers prioritise checking content that has the potential to harm people’s health and safety, as well as content that undermines democratic processes, such as inaccurate information about voting. 

RMIT FactLab works alongside RMIT ABC Fact Check, a separate fact-checking unit established as a partnership between RMIT University and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) in 2017. RMIT ABC Fact Check verifies claims made by politicians and other public figures.  

The content of both fact-checking units is highlighted weekly in an email newsletter produced by RMIT FactLab called CheckMate. 

The disinformation posted on Telegram channels has also been shared on Facebook. The posts wrongly state, “The ABC and others will be using a leftwing university to “fact-check” information regarding the Aboriginal Voice.

“But we have seen this before .. Its [sic] how an election was recently rigged in America, where they “fact-checked” true stories as “false” to bury them from public view,” a Telegram user wrote. 

“All the big corporations, radical leftwing activists and subversive foreign interests are pushing the Yes vote and they will use this Orwellian “FactLab” and “Checkmate” based at RMIT University for their cause,” the user wrote. 

The Telegram channels have more than 4,700 subscribers collectively, with the posts about RMIT FactLab viewed nearly 9,000 times. 

Both RMIT FactLab and RMIT ABC Fact Check are accredited by the International Fact Checking Network (IFCN) in the United States and are signatories to the IFCN’s code of principles, which requires a commitment to fairness, transparency and non-partisanship.

Neither fact-checking unit receives funding nor editorial direction from political parties, advocacy groups and lobby groups. While RMIT University provides some funding to the unit, it does not provide any editorial direction.

Tom Bentley, Executive Director Policy and Impact at RMIT University, told FactLab that the University respected RMIT FactLab’s independence.

"RMIT FactLab is an independent unit which receives no editorial direction from RMIT,” he said. 

"RMIT encourages our community to be well informed on the Voice to Parliament to fully participate in the democratic process. We understand there are differing opinions and encourage the RMIT community to engage in the debate with respect, he said.  "Our hope is that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples have a greater influence in political decision making regarding their social, spiritual and economic wellbeing.”

In an informal non-commercial arrangement, the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) is working with fact-checking units such as RMIT FactLab, RMIT ABC Fact Check and the AAP FactCheck to combat false information that relates to the electoral process of the referendum on the Indigenous Voice to Parliament. 

Sushi Das, chief of staff at RMIT ABC Fact Check and assistant director at RMIT FactLab, said, “We have simply established a close working relationship so that we can share information on potentially harmful content that relates specifically to the electoral process as we get closer to the Voice referendum.”

Incorrect claims by public figures and mis/disinformation about the Voice, including those that relate to the electoral process of the referendum, can cause harm by spreading fear and uncertainty, she said. 

“We are committed to fighting the spread of false claims and mis/disinformation that can harm people and undermine democratic processes,” she said.

Ms Das said neither RMIT FactLab nor RMIT ABC Fact Check is an arbiter of truth: “Each relies on evidence-based information to establish the facts.” 

RMIT FactLab is one of more than 90 fact-checking units worldwide that work in partnership with Meta as third-party fact checkers to verify potential misinformation and disinformation on its platforms.

Social media posts labelled as false by third-party fact checkers are downgraded in Facebook and Instagram users’ feeds so that fewer people are exposed to false information. 

RMIT FactLab retains total independence and control over the third-party fact-checking process. Meta, as well as RMIT University, have no control over what FactLab chooses to fact check, how it is fact checked and the verdict applied. 

This is the second time that RMIT FactLab has found anti-Voice Telegram channels spreading false information about the Voice referendum’s electoral process. Earlier this month, one channel falsely claimed that the referendum result could be delayed to allow time for votes to be rigged.