Dispatch

Indigenous communities seek control over their data as AI and disinformation grow

Dispatch

By Janet E. Silver

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November 6, 2026

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Indigenous communities across Canada are seeking greater control over data collected about them as the use of AI and online disinformation grows. Elders worry Indigenous teachings shared online could be distorted by AI, while community leaders worry about the effects of disinformation on young people increasingly turning to the internet for news and information.

Vulnerable, diaspora and Indigenous communities are subject to increasing disinformation. 

Indigenous leaders say large language models can reproduce biases and negative stereotypes. They argue that communities need to oversee how data about them is collected and used to protect their people, teachings and online identities.

“When the algorithms get put in place, they’re not considering our culture, it’s not considering our languages, it’s not considering our past, it’s not considering our health of our people,” said Carmen Jones, director of research and data management for the Chiefs of Ontario. 

As the federal government implements its AI strategy, Jones and other Indigenous leaders say data sovereignty — the ability to manage, control and protect data about their communities — is essential. 

They say AI can falsify Indigenous identities and help spread disinformation.

Disinformation, AI and Indigenous communities in Canada is the focus of the third episode of an 8-part documentary series on the information ecosystem airing on CPAC-TV and on cpac.ca.

Written by Janet E. Silver

Janet Silver has spent nearly 30 years working in news and current affairs across all mediums in Canada and the U.S. She is currently the vice-president of World Press Freedom Canada.
View all posts by Janet E. Silver

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