After drafting and publishing the European Code of Standards for Independent Fact-Checking Organisations, nearly 50 European fact-checking organisations have voted and agreed upon the mission and shape of an association that will govern the Code and represent Europe’s fact-checking community. 

The European Fact-checking Standards Network (EFCSN) will be open to European fact-checking organisations who meet the Code’s standards on methodology, ethics and transparency. 

The network will be led by an 11-person Governance Body, made up of representatives from the EFCSN’s member organisations, who will run the association, promote media literacy activities for the public, and serve as a representative voice for European fact-checkers. 

The aims and powers of the association were agreed upon by nearly 50 European fact-checking organisations involved in the EFCSN project who met at a summit celebrated in Madrid in September this year and voted on the statutes two weeks later.

🎉 Thank you to all! 🎉

On the 28th and 29th of September the organisations belonging to the EFCSN met in Madrid to discuss the structure of a European association. For that a Governance Body will soon be elected and then presented in Brussels in November. 🇪🇺 pic.twitter.com/N2hqV2xXCA

— European Fact-Checking Standards Network (@eurofactcheck) October 5, 2022

In the following weeks these organisations will elect the members of the first Governance Body of the EFCSN, who will be presented to the public in Brussels in November. Fact-checking organisations from Europe will be able to begin applying to join the network in early 2023. 

This project is part of the Call of Integrity of Social Media by the European Commission and is led by six European organisations focused on fighting misinformation: Fundación Maldita.es (Spain), AFP (France), CORRECTIV (Germany), DEMAGOG (Poland), Pagella Politica/ Facta (Italy) and EU DisinfoLab (Belgium).

Follow the EFCSN’s Twitter and LinkedIn for regular updates on this project.