Technology as trustmark: C2PA helps the media assure reliability
SIDN Fund supports development of an open-source implementation of C2PA standard
As a consumer, how can you tell whether a video was actually made by a reputable news outlet? And how does a reputable content creator make sure that their output isn’t manipulated by an algorithm or malicious actor once it’s in circulation? In an era when deepfakes and generative AI are blurring the boundary between fact and fiction, the demand for verifiable content is growing. With support from SIDN Fund, Media Campus NL is therefore working on a solution: an open-source-implementation of the international C2PA standard. So, in the future, it’ll be easier for Dutch media organisations to provide consumers with clarity regarding the origin of content and any changes made to it.
C2PA: a digital trustmark
“C2PA – which stands for Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity – is an international standard for adding metadata to digital files, including video and image files,” explains Innovation Manager Manon van der Knaap-Hartig. “The added metadata provides information about who created the file, what’s happened to it since, and whether it’s been modified in transit. Like a wax seal on a letter in times gone by, the metadata doesn’t guarantee that the content of the communication is true, but it does tell the recipient who it really comes from, and whether it’s been tampered with along the way. The big tech companies already support C2PA, but many Dutch media industry players lack the time, knowledge or resources to adopt it.”
Open-source implementation
Media Campus NL has therefore teamed up with Dawn Technology to develop a reusable open-source C2PA implementation to facilitate adoption. The project involves the development of a tool that media organisations can use to provide their content with C2PA signatures linked to verifiable electronic identities (e.g. based on Yivi). There will also be a validation service (verifieermij.nl) for checking the origin and authenticity of media. “Editorial teams and distributors want better control over the origin of media,” continues Manon. “News broadcaster VPRO is the project’s pilot partner and will be using the new tooling for programmes such as Tegenlicht. Other media organisations, such as ANP, RTL, DPG Media and Beeld & Geluid have expressed an interest as well.”
More than a technical solution
The project is emphatically not exclusively technical. “You can provide a technical specification, but that’s never the whole story,” says Manon. “Media Campus NL is therefore looking at the contextual debate as well. We’re working with media organisations, distributors and other stakeholders to explore ways of making C2PA work in practice. After all, the implementation of origin information raises wider questions about things like journalistic reliability, digital sovereignty and legislation. The technology has to go hand-in-hand with awareness, practical applications and public support.”
Financial support from SIDN Fund
SIDN Fund’s support has given the project extra impetus. “Funding is always vital to initiatives like ours,” Manon confirms. “Developing a standard for widespread use is a complex undertaking that requires time, knowledge and collaboration. The grant from SIDN Fund has enabled Media Campus NL to take on a coordinating role and make time available on a structural basis for dialogue, onboarding and knowledge-sharing. It also takes time to get people using a new standard. I’ve now had countless conversations about C2PA. Typically the person I’m talking to doesn’t initially know what C2PA is. When I explain, they say, yes, it’s important to have something like that. It’s only then that they ask what can be done. That’s why an injection of finance is so vital at this stage. Once you get one organisation onboard, others often follow, and things start moving.”
Strengthening trust in online news and media
The development of a public, reusable C2PA implementation is an important step towards a media ecosystem with built-in transparency and reliability. As Manon says, “Technology isn’t going to save us from fake news, but it can help us restore confidence in the source of our news. In the current landscape, that’s a huge step forward.”
Want to know more? Visit mediacampus.nl/c2pa or mail manon.vanderknaap@mediacampus.nl.
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