SAO PAULO, November 11. /TASS/. News media in the countries that are interested in cooperation with the Global South should provide unbiased and credible content, TASS First Deputy Director General Mikhail Gusman said at a Global South media conference in Brazil.

"In order to create a positive and unbiased media environment among the countries of the Global South, news media must stand by the vector toward balanced and truthful information" he told the Global South Media and Think Tank Forum in the city of Sao Paulo.

According to the TASS executive, news media across the Global South should develop common mechanisms to combat disinformation.

"TASS is always ready to share with colleagues the best editorial practices when it comes to unmasking fake news and fact-checking," Gusman said.

He also noted that at a time when journalists regularly have their rights violated, media organizations should defend the right to do their professional duty.

Gusman quoted Russian President Vladimir Putin as saying that news media in BRICS and Global South countries can successfully work together as the countries have similar views on many issues.

Ahead of the forum’s opening, executives from the participating media outlets met with Hu Heping, executive deputy head of the Propaganda Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, who is also China’s culture and tourism minister. In his speech at the meeting, Gusman mentioned that at the TASS-organized BRICS Media Summit in September, more than 100 Russian and foreign participants discussed shaping common approaches to combating fake news.

The Global South Media and Think Tank Forum is taking place from November 11-13. Co-hosted by Xinhua News Agency and the Brazil Communication Company, also known as EBC, the forum has the following theme: "Development and Revitalization: A New Journey for the Global South." Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Chinese President Xi Jinping sent congratulatory messages to the forum’s participants.