When falsehood travels faster than truth: Why digital responsibility matters for our peace and progress

DAR ES SALAAM: THERE was a time when rumours travelled slowly. They moved from one person to another, tested through conversation, and often faded before causing real harm.

Today, a misleading post, an AI edited video or a provocative headline can reach thousands within minutes, long before facts have a chance to catch up.

This is the reality of our digital age in Tanzania, and it explains why misinformation, disinformation, malinformation and hate speech now demand serious public attention. Tanzania’s digital space is growing steadily and visibly.

At the end of June 2025, the country had 54.1 million internet users, roughly 79 per cent per cent penetration of the population (TCRA Statistics as of June 2025).

As of end of September 2025, Tanzania had 56.3 million internet users, which is 82.6 per cent penetration of the population. (TCRA Statistics September 2025).

With a number of SIM card in use at 99.3 million, these numbers continue to rise year after year. This growth is, in many ways, a positive development.

Most Tanzanians use mobile internet through mobile phones. It supports entrepreneurship, widens access to information and strengthens civic participation.

At the same time, it means that the consequences of false or harmful information are far wider and more immediate than ever before.

What once might have affected a few individuals can now influence entire communities within hours. Not all harmful information is created in the same way.

Misinformation is the false content shared unknowingly, often driven by good intentions.

People forward messages out of concern, curiosity or a desire to help others.

Disinformation, on the other hand, is deliberate. It is designed to mislead, inflame emotions or undermine trust in institutions and leaders.

Malinformation lies somewhere in between: Information that may be true, but is shared out of context or with harmful intent.

When these forms of content are mixed with hate speech, the impact can be deeply damaging to social harmony and mutual respect.

Local evidence shows that this is not a theoretical concern. Monitoring by fact-checking organisations in 2025 revealed just how widespread the problem has become.

In one review of 192 viral claims circulating online, 67 per cent were found to be false, while a further 22 per cent were misleading.

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Such findings demonstrate how easily harmful narratives can take root and how persuasive they can be once they gain momentum.

The media sector is feeling the strain as well. Studies involving Tanzanian journalists and newsrooms indicate that more than 70 per cent of reporters regularly encounter fake or manipulated sources in their work.

A strong majority say the spread of misinformation is eroding public trust in credible journalism, making it harder for accurate reporting to stand out in an increasingly noisy digital environment. International research mirrors these concerns.

Across different regions, misinformation and hate speech have been linked to growing polarisation, declining trust in institutions and a heightened risk of conflict.

Humanitarian and peacebuilding organisations now regard misinformation, disinformation and hate speech as an urgent and systemic risk, particularly in fragile or highly emotional information environments.

These are not distant global issues; they are challenges that directly affect social cohesion and economic progress at home.

(Humanitarian Grand Challenge scoping study on MDH) Why does this matter for peace and development? Because trust is the glue that holds societies together.

When citizens lose confidence in institutions, media and one another, dialogue breaks down. Suspicion replaces reason.

Small misunderstandings can quickly escalate into tension.

Development suffers when people doubt official information about health services, public programmes or economic opportunities. Investors hesitate, public servants are forced into constant damage control, and communities become more divided than united.

The answer, however, is not fear or excessive control. It is responsibility, literacy and collective maturity.

Digital literacy must go beyond teaching people how to use smartphones.

It must help citizens develop the habit of questioning what they see and hear: Who is the source? Has this information been verified? Why is it being shared and what emotion is it trying to provoke?

Schools, training institutions and community programmes have a vital role to play in building these skills from an early age.

Public institutions also carry a heavy responsibility. Information vacuums are dangerous.

When official communication is slow, unclear or inconsistent, speculation quickly fills the gap.

Timely, calm and factual communication, especially during sensitive moments, reduces the space in which rumours and falsehoods thrive. The media remains a cornerstone of credibility.

Supporting professional journalism, ethical standards and transparent correction of errors strengthen the entire information environment.

When citizens trust journalists, they are less likely to rely on anonymous posts, forwarded voice notes and unverified claims. Digital platforms cannot be left out of this conversation.

While they connect people and create opportunity, they also shape which messages travel furthest.

Cooperation with government, media and civil society, particularly in addressing hate speech and coordinated disinformation, is essential to maintaining a healthy digital space.

Ultimately, the most powerful defence lies with ordinary users, the netizens themselves. Every share is a choice.

Every comment contributes to the tone of our national conversation.

Choosing restraint over reaction, verification over virality, and respect over insult is an act of citizenship in the digital age.

Data protection laws and regulations serve as a vital line of defence against misinformation, disinformation and malinformation by regulating how personal data is collected, analysed and used to influence individuals and communities.

Many harmful narratives are fuelled by the unlawful harvesting and exploitation of personal data for targeted messaging, behavioural manipulation and deceptive digital campaigns.

Tanzania Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC) has a role to play in minimising misleading information related to privacy and personal data.

By enforcing principles such as transparency, consent, purpose limitation and accountability, data protection frameworks constrain the misuse of personal data and reduce the capacity to precisely target individuals with misleading or harmful content.

Beyond limiting abuse, data protection helps preserve the integrity of the information environment itself.

The spread of false or distorted narratives is often accelerated through impersonation, fabricated identities, automated profiling and AI-driven manipulation that rely on compromised or unlawfully obtained personal data.

Regulations governing profiling, automated decision-making and data accuracy help curb these practices while protecting individuals from covert manipulation.

In this context, data protection is not merely a privacy safeguard; it is a cornerstone of ethical communication, public trust and resilient democratic discourse in the digital age.

Tanzania has long valued peace, tranquillity and social cohesion.

These values must now be protected online as carefully as they are offline.

The internet should reflect our collective maturity, not our worst impulses.

If we invest in digital literacy, strengthen responsible communication and promote social responsibility among users, the digital space can become a force for unity, development and informed participation, rather than division.

In the end, technology is neutral. What matters is how we choose to use it.