About the project
UNHCR launched an online campaign to manage disinformation and rumors about refugees in Bulgaria, entitled “They said that …”
Through this platform, the Refugee Advisory Board aims to identify and manage the rumors by debunking them using official sources and providing correct and reliable information about them.
Starting a new life in a new environment often involves building a new way for exchanging information. This is especially true for access to basic services, where the refugee community creates alternative sources of information, which often include misinformation and rumors. Тhere is no system for verifying the authenticity of information and verifying the sources of information, because communities define these ways by themselves using social platforms.
The harm caused by the rumors is not limited to refugees, but also to the societies that receive them. One of the most important reasons for refugees seeking a new asylum opportunity after arriving in Bulgaria is the deliberate or involuntary misinformation used by some media, which, on the one hand, represents host societies as an inhospitable place for refugees and, on the other hand, encourage refugees to leave Bulgaria by spreading disappointment, misinformation about Bulgaria, false information about the labor market, society and existing opportunities.
This platform aims to fill this gap and become a preferred source of information on pressing topics of interest to and of refugees in Bulgaria.
