
On September 19, at the World Youth Festival Assembly, held on behalf of the President of the Russian Federation, a talk show session was held entitled "Media Literacy Without Borders: How to Develop Critical Thinking." Experts from the United States, Portugal, South Africa, and Venezuela were represented among the participants. The delegates from dozens of countries were able to engage in an open dialogue with the speakers about the role of fact-checking and critical thinking in the contemporary world.
The meeting was moderated by Timofey Vi, an expert from the International Fact-Checking Association, who presented the program and provided statistics on fake news verification in Russia: 62 percent of Russians are confident that they can distinguish false information from real information. However, the experts reminded the participants of the Assembly that it is important to remain vigilant.
During the talk show, experts from Singapore, Portugal, South Africa, and Venezuela discussed how young people can combat misinformation on the internet. Participants learned from experienced experts about fact-checking and information verification mechanisms in different countries. The speakers were Lily Ong from Singapore, an expert at the International Fact-Checking Association and an analyst on geopolitics and cybersecurity at Geopolitics360; Dr. Alexandre Guerreiro from Portugal, an expert at the International Fact-Checking Association, lawyer, researcher, Mantula Nongkululeko from South Africa, CEO of GSQ Media House and co-chair of the BRICS Journalists Association, expert at the International Fact-Checking Association, and Orlenys Ortiz from Venezuela, political communications specialist, researcher, and anti-disinformation activist.
Lily Ong focused her attention on the spread of cognitive biases that are used to manipulate public opinion: "Perhaps the main thing is bias. People tend to accept information that coincides with their existing beliefs, and manipulators take advantage of this by feeding them one-sided facts that reinforce their point of view. I think we are all familiar with this. When we believe in something and receive information that confirms this belief, we immediately think, 'Yes, that's right, it's true, it's a fact,' without even bothering to check other reliable sources."
Dr. Alexandre Guerreiro devoted his speech to the legal basis and the fight against fake news through the law. He also explained the importance of freedom of speech:
“It cannot be said that freedom of speech exists independently of the country in which we live. Sometimes we hear people say, "But freedom of speech is sacred here." Yes, it’s true. But with freedom of speech comes responsibility: civil and criminal. You have freedom of speech, but you do not have the right to lie about me. You have freedom of speech, but you cannot just fool someone with your incredible speech. Its means that every fundamental right that a person has entails responsibility and accountability. And this is essentially what all organizations and all countries must do when dealing with both legal entities and individuals. A legal framework should be in place everywhere to define and set limits on freedom of speech”.
The talk show is a format for dynamic interaction between the participants of the Assembly and international speakers. It allowed the audience to be as involved as possible in the discussion of various issues. The discussions focused on the importance of verifying information on the internet, maintaining critical thinking, recognizing fakes, and the ability to defend one's own opinion.
"The topic of critical thinking, which was the subject of one of the lectures, is very important for every young person. The ability to analyze, compare different sources of information, and see events from different angles is the basis for forming one's own view and correctly understanding global processes," said Muhammad Rofi, a participant in the "Education and Science" track from the Stavropol Territory.
The general partners of the WYF Assembly-2025 are the Russian Music Union, JSC Russian Railways, and Phygital Games. The general information partner is the international television channel RT, and the general media partner is ANO Dialog Regions. The partner for the excursion and regional programs is the More Than Trip program. The strategic partner is VK Tech. Co. The following have also joined the partnership program: “New Generation” program arranged by the Federal Agency for Affairs of the Commonwealth of Independent States, Compatriots Residing Abroad and International Humanitarian Cooperation (Rossotrudnichestvo), the Movement of the First, the presidential platform “Russia – Country of Opportunities”, Sovcombank, the Avito Tech. Co., State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom, Russian “Znanie” (Knowledge) Society, the Film Studio Soyuzmultfilm, the Government of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, the Central Bank of Russia, program for young entrepreneurs “Rosmolodezh.Undertake” and the Mashuk Knowledge Center. Information support for the event is provided by Rossiyskaya Gazeta, Argumenty i Fakty publishing house, the African Initiative and the Window to Russia project of ANO “TV-Novosti”.
The organizer of the World Youth Festival Assembly is the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs (Rosmolodezh), the co-organizer of the event is the Government of the Nizhny Novgorod Region and the event operator is the World Youth Festival Directorate. The Festival pursues the goals of the Youth and Children national project.
Overview:
In accordance with the instructions of the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin on preserving and developing the legacy of the World Youth Festival, which took place on the Sirius Federal Territory in 2024 and united 20,000 young people from 190 countries of the world, festival events on the territory of the Russian Federation will be held annually. The next World Youth Festival for 20,000 participants will be held in 2030. In 2026, there will be a smaller event, an International Youth Festival with 10,000 participants. In between, the World Youth Festival’s themed Assemblies will be held annually for 2,000 participants. The World Youth Festival Directorate continues its work aimed at strengthening international youth cooperation.