Media literacy education should start in kindergarten, just as there is also a need for education aimed at journalists and specialists in the technological area, Secretary General of the European Alliance of News Agencies (EANA) Alexandru Giboi said on Tuesday at the Digital Innovation Summit Bucharest 2026 (DISB 2026).

'There is a discussion at European level and I carried out a survey among EANA members to assess whether we can achieve a standardization, at least broadly, of what content source verification means. I hope that, at some point, a tool can be developed, an easy-to-use, affordable, and easily implementable technological solution. In fact, this is where we must start. If we want to have results, we need to think 'across the board,' we need to think on the entire European scale, because we're talking about mass media and solutions that can be generally applied. From my point of view, media literacy education should be a fundamental part in any educational curriculum of any country. It should start in kindergarten, continue until we leave this world. (...) We must teach people to discern, to think, as I said, critically, to a certain extent, because there is nuance here. Extreme critical thinking can lead the public to a situation where they believe nothing, or it can cause an uneducated public, one that doesn't understand certain concepts (...) to believe that information from family or neighbours is true, to the detriment of information they receive from the media,' Giboi explained.

On the other hand, in his view, there should be someone 'to press the button' when an AI agent 'goes rogue and starts downloading all types of applications.'

'From my point of view, when an AI agent goes rogue and starts downloading all types of applications, starts posting various nonsense or creates a false religion, there must be someone who presses the button. In fact, there are two entities: the one who creates the respective software and the one who must regulate the creation of the respective software,' the EANA official conveyed.

In her turn, AGERPRES National News Agency Director General Claudia Nicolae pointed out that four in ten people, at global level, are concerned about the authenticity of news.

MIHAI POZIUMSCHI / AGERPRES PHOTO
'Fifty-eight percent of the global population is concerned when asked about real news or fake news. It is a point from which we must start. (...) Another rather alarming figure: 40 percent of the entire world's population is concerned about the authenticity of news. It is a percentage which has remained the same for three years and we are seeing that, although we are fighting, at media level, to reduce this percentage and connect with trusted sources, we are not succeeding. And we are not succeeding because perhaps we haven't integrated the new technology enough. And there is another figure, if 'fact-checking' really matters to people: 38 percent of the population still believes in quality information,' Claudia Nicolae said.

Director General of Radio Romania Actualitati (Romanian Radio Broadcasting Company) Robert Cristian Schwartz underscored that artificial intelligence can assist in editorial work, administration and other activities, but it cannot replace a reporter.

MIHAI POZIUMSCHI / AGERPRES PHOTO
'Clearly, AI can support all our editorial work, and not just that, but also in administration and all repetitive operations. However, when it comes to journalistic material, the human factor becomes even more crucial. Each of us can be a reporter, it's true. But a good reporter knows when to ask questions, what questions to ask, knows when it's best to stay quiet, when to listen. Algorithms will never be able to do that. I am convinced of that. Therefore, the human factor in all our editorial work cannot and will not be replaced,' Schwartz pointed out.

According to Director General of SRTv (Romanian Television Broadcasting Corporation) Adriana Saftoiu, what is generally lacking is critical thinking and we should learn to use it from a young age.

MIHAI POZIUMSCHI / AGERPRES PHOTO

'Things are not easy to manage, in my view, because I believe that what we largely lack is what is called critical thinking. (...) Most of the time, to differentiate between fake news, disinformation and real information, you need to know how to look at the news, how to read the news and where to find your sources. (...) I share the same impression and belief that the human factor will not disappear. The issue is whether we educate it for the present day. I believe there are many subjects in school that have become somewhat outdated. And I don't think it would hurt if, from an early age, we truly learned what critical thinking is and how to use it,' Adriana Saftoiu explained.

The National Institute for Research and Development in Informatics (ICI) Bucharest is organizing between 10 and 12 March, at the Palace of Parliament, a new edition of the Digital Innovation Summit Bucharest 2026 international event.

AGERPRES National News Agency is a one of the media partners of the event. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Daniel Badea, Nicoleta Gherasi; EN - writing by: Rodica State)