NEWSROOMS AND INFLUENCERS UNITE IN CLIC CAMPAIGN TO COUNTER ONLINE DISINFORMATION

Agence France-Presse, France Médias Monde and Slovenian investigative centre Oštro have launched the production phase of CLIC, a European social media initiative tackling disinformation. By partnering professional journalists with influential online creators, the project aims to reach younger audiences in France and Slovenia with engaging fact-checking content ahead of elections.

A new European initiative is bringing together journalists and social media personalities in an effort to confront the growing tide of online disinformation. The project, known as CLIC (Curate Learning, Inform Creatively), has entered its production phase after being launched in January 2026 by Agence France-Presse, France Médias Monde and the Slovenian investigative journalism centre Oštro.

The initiative seeks to merge the credibility and investigative rigour of professional journalism with the vast reach of online content creators. Organisers say the goal is simple but urgent: expand the audience for fact-checking at a time when misleading narratives and false information are spreading rapidly across social media platforms and posing a challenge to democratic processes across Europe.

CLIC will focus particularly on France and Slovenia, two countries currently navigating significant election cycles and frequently targeted by disinformation campaigns. Over the next 16 months, the partners plan to produce hundreds of pieces of content designed specifically for social media audiences. These will include short-form videos, visual carousels and podcasts published in French and Slovenian.

Central to the project is the idea that younger audiences are more likely to engage with information when it appears in familiar formats delivered by trusted online personalities. Two well-known figures from the French digital scene will play a prominent role: science communicator Jamy Gourmaud, founder of Epicurieux, and popular educator César Roussel, widely recognised online as César Culture G. Their content aims to present verified information in an accessible and entertaining way while challenging viral misinformation.

In Slovenia, creators Maša Muster and Nik Škrlec will contribute their own fact-checking insights and analysis, helping adapt the project’s approach to local audiences and issues. By combining regional expertise with the editorial standards of international journalism, the partners hope to create content that resonates across different communities.

The consortium is being coordinated by AFP, which is working alongside France Médias Monde and Oštro to manage production and distribution. Once created, the material will be shared widely through the official social media accounts of both the organisations and the creators themselves, reaching users on platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and Facebook.

For the organisations involved, the strategy reflects a recognition that the fight against misinformation increasingly takes place in the same digital spaces where falsehoods spread fastest. By blending journalism with creative storytelling and the influence of online personalities, the CLIC project aims not only to debunk misleading claims but also to equip viewers—especially younger users—with the critical skills needed to recognise false information before they hit “share”.