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he spread of fake news and hoaxes has eroded public confidence in online journalism and even stirred unrest in society.

There will be no more trust in journalism as a profession unless measures are taken to stop the spread of unverified news.

In an experience that is still fresh in their minds, Indonesian netizens were thrilled to hear about a plan to develop a Disneyland entertainment park in Boyolali regency, Central Java, in news that went viral in April.

It began with Boyolali Regent Seno Samudra talking about receiving an offer from the Disneyland managers in California to build a venue on a 100-hectare site in the regency with total investment of about Rp 6 trillion (US$450 million).

However, Disneyland management denied the reports.

“At this moment there is no plan to build Disneyland in Indonesia,” the Southeast Asia Walt Disney Company executive director for communication, Sesha Kanthamraju, told Kompas.com not long after the fake news had spread.

The biggest challenge online media in Indonesia face is that almost anyone can produce content without verification on online platforms, which are not registered with the Indonesian Press Council. This may allow hoaxes and fake news to spread quickly.

Online news portal Merdeka.com editor-in-chief Wensislaus Manggut noted that media companies were not the only institutions that could produce commercial news content in the country.

He pointed out that non-listed online media were also eager to create as much content as possible to boost traffic and reap money from the business.

“Anyone using any online platform can create news content now,” he told reporters on the sidelines of the 1st congress of the Indonesia Cyber Media Association (AMSI) in Jakarta on Tuesday.

The association, which was established in April, kicked off its first congress in an effort to improve the online journalism business in the country. Officials of about 130 online media from 17 provinces attended the congress.

Vice President Jusuf Kalla officially opened the event, during which he delivered a speech to remind the participants of their power in shaping public opinion through news. “This nation can rise and strive to be better if you deliver the right information to the public,” he said.

During the congress, participants discussed ways for online media in the country to accelerate their business while maintaining journalistic ethics and standards.

Wensislaus, who is also the association’s presidium chairman, said regulation might be problematic, because it could limit press freedom if it was too strict, but it could cause chaos if it was too loose. (ecn)