Astana hosts Turkic states' information ministers meeting

Ministers and senior officials responsible for information in member states of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) gathered in Astana for the 8th meeting, Egemen Qazaqstan reported. Attendees included First Deputy Minister of Culture and Information Kanat Yskakov, Deputy Secretary General Ömer Koçaman, and representatives from Uzbekistan, Türkiye, Kyrgyzstan and Azerbaijan.

Yskakov said digital technologies and artificial intelligence are fundamentally changing media, information distribution and audience engagement. While AI opens new opportunities, he said, it also strengthens existing threats: fake material that is hard to tell apart from genuine video, images and audio can now be produced without large resources, and declining trust in genuine information sources has become a pressing issue.

Participants discussed deepfake detection, rapid fact-checking, strengthening ties between national news agencies and building journalists' skills with new technologies. The meeting took place within the Astana Media Week international media forum. Participants signed a joint communiqué, and the 9th meeting will be held in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.