The AFCON Morocco–Senegal final sparked an unprecedented wave of misinformation, with false claims spreading rapidly from social media to newspapers. Moroccan journalists, navigating this surge, navigating this wave, share their views on the phenomenon, the race for clicks, and the growing impact of misinformation on media credibility.
The Morocco–Senegal Africa Cup of Nations final has set precedents on more than one level: a pitch walk-off, an unprecedented CAF ruling awarding the title months after the final, and a surge in fake news. Attributed statements that were never made, a supposed Morocco 1976 walk-off that never happened, and many other viral claims that, at first glance, looked legitimate but relied solely on rumors and unverified social media posts.
Shared at lightning speed online, this misinformation quickly made its way into newspapers, magazines, and even reputable media organizations, granting it a false sense of legitimacy.
Moroccan journalists were not spared from this wave. While covering AFCON, they, like readers, had to navigate it, verify it, and, in many cases, draw lessons from it.
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