strongly affects Latin America, the Caribbean, and Hispanic communities in other countries, including the USA. 4.4 CONCLUSION Latin America has seen the emergence of several initiatives spearheaded by various actors to analyze and tackle disinformation in the region. Data cited previously show that the problem has spread, causing great worry among users. Platforms have been trying to react to the growth of this practice, though still in very inefficient ways, especially as regards Spanish-speaking regions and audiences. In light of these weaknesses, international and civil society entities and fact-checking projects have been active in the region. A significant number of these initiatives are financed or supported by governmental institutions from the Global North; this points to the influence of these organizations on the work that is carried out in Latin America and the Caribbean, a situation which warrants deeper research. As regards international entities, institutions such as UNESCO and the IACHR Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression, which have a track record of engagements with the issue of freedom of expression, have begun to direct efforts at countering disinformation. Fact-checking projects have emerged in Latin American countries, though in an uneven way, and in many cases these initiatives are still tied to media conglomerates. Latin American civil society has a vibrant tradition of defending freedom of expression, and long-established organizations are now addressing disinformation, along with new networks and entities that have been created to deal with the issue. 5. CASE STUDY: ARGENTINA 5.1 THE DISINFORMATION LANDSCAPE IN THE COUNTRY Like other Latin American countries, Argentina has a very concentrated media landscape. The Clarín Group is the main conglomerate in the country, being the leader in pay-TV, internet access, and mobile access, besides being active in the field of content production through its own vehicles. In terms of the internet, there are other portals with a broad reach, such as Infobae. According to a report by researchers associated with the Global Disinformation Index (Szewach and Freuler I N FO R M ATI O N D I SO R D ER IN THE GLOBA L SOUTH 2020), two-thirds (twenty-one out of thirty-two) of a sample of sites analyzed presented high risks of misinforming their readers. These portals did not meet the basic editorial and operational policy requirements adopted as a reference by the study. Another ten were classified as medium risk: Although they publish non-sensationalist and unbiased content, they had problems with issues such as subscription and transparency about funding sources. However, the authors of the study ascribed their conclusions less to content and more to poor performance on operational criteria—for example those of the Journalism Trust Initiative (JTI)—such as not publishAccording to a report by ing authors’ signatures and lack of researchers associated with the transparency about ownership. Global Disinformation Index Abdala, Scherlis, and Tchintian (Szewach and Freuler 2020), (2020) analyzed the political two-thirds (twenty-one out of disinformation scenario in thirty-two) of a sample of sites the country and listed certain characteristics, such as the analyzed presented high risks of presence of cyber-trolls,18 which misinforming their readers. were related to government actors in both the administrations of Cristina Kirchner (center-left) (2007–2015) and Mauricio Macri (right) (2015–2019). In addition, fake accounts had a strong presence during the 2019 elections. During that period, the fact-checking agency Chequeado disproved 170 items. One example was an edited video in which the then candidate and now president, Alberto Fernández, supposedly criticized his vice president, Cristina Kirchner. The video was shared 220,000 times on Facebook. Also during the 2019 elections, a campaign was launched that made claims of electoral fraud without any proof, using the hashtag #FraudeK (a letter used in reference to Cristina Kirchner). These messages, according to the researchers, went viral mainly via WhatsApp. In 2020, the Entrelíneas website (Nimer 2020) listed what it labelled as major examples of disinformation in the country. For example, a TV station (A24) released a video showing the social activist Milagro Sala at a party, supposedly during the lockdown; however, the celebration had in fact taken place before the pandemic. Videos circulated claiming that government employees would not pay taxes for the year, which was untrue. Other messages suggested the return of superinflation because of supposedly unnumbered bills, a claim which was denied by the Argentinian Central Bank. The pandemic has been a driving factor of disinformation in the country. In July 2020, a little over three months after the first Covid-19 cases Latin America and the Caribbean – 92