This thread about how fake news spreads on social media is fascinating and depressing
You’ll have seen by now how a sick four-year-old boy forced to sleep on a hospital floor has become a central figure in the general election campaign.
First Boris Johnson refused to look at a picture of the poor chap, instead taking a journalist’s phone and stuffing it in his pocket.
Then theories spread that the picture was staged and it was all fake news. Spread by people like Telegraph columnist Allison Pearson.
… even thought the hospital itself has apologised for what happened.
Which brings us to this thread by @marcowenjones about how fake news spreads on social media and it’s a fascinating, depressing, but essential read.
[Thread]1/ This one is about the fake news claiming that a sick boy on the floor of a hospital in leeds was staged by his mother. We know the story is real, Dr Yvette Oade, chief medical officer at Leeds even apologised https://t.co/3HNvsR2PWJ
— Marc Owen Jones (@marcowenjones) December 9, 2019
2/ Firstly, the bots and sock puppet accounts are on the case on Twitter. As you can see, an identical tweet claiming the mother staged the photo was circulated on Twitter. It’s literally copied and pasted, and the accounts are targeting it at various influencers pic.twitter.com/OtdfBnRKnw
— Marc Owen Jones (@marcowenjones) December 9, 2019
3/ Even more alarming is on Facebook. The exact same tweet is mentioned on dozens of fairly dodgy looking FB accounts. What’s more, is that some of these posts are pasted into groups where they get liked and commented on, often by people who seem to believe it … #bbcqt pic.twitter.com/Ov5CRJN97h
— Marc Owen Jones (@marcowenjones) December 9, 2019
4/ In one example, Jason Crosby pastes the tweet on the FB group for “Seaham Have Your Say”. Seaham have your say is a page with 24k followers serving the North Eastern coastal town of Seaham. His post gets 91 comments and 26 shares. pic.twitter.com/kgW3x31a57
— Marc Owen Jones (@marcowenjones) December 9, 2019
5/ This one is even more egregious. The fake news post on the group March Cambridgeshire Free Discussion with 37k members has 235 comments and 28 shares. You can see the comments here, https://t.co/sHH5SJwr2l – many call out the fakeness, others seem to believe it… pic.twitter.com/Yv6LSOkzbb
— Marc Owen Jones (@marcowenjones) December 9, 2019
6/ It’s interesting to note that in addition to targeting national level Facebook groups, a lot of these accounts are targeting influential local Facebook groups such as that of Cambridgeshire and Seaham. We know the role local FB groups are said to play in this election
— Marc Owen Jones (@marcowenjones) December 10, 2019
7/ Meanwhile, back on Twitter, @Telegraph columnist @allisonpearson retweeted the copy and pasted tweet (of course in theory the text could still be genuine – but if so why is is circulated by weird sock puppets). Pearson ‘presumes it is genuine’. pic.twitter.com/BwqdTrdrvk
— Marc Owen Jones (@marcowenjones) December 10, 2019
8/ It’s 3.20 am here and I’m tired but I’ll wager @allisonpearson is perhaps the most influential proponent of the faked floor theory. Stay tuned for her expose in the telegraph. I hope she interviewed the senior nursing sister! Night all ! https://t.co/FDxkiXzhnr pic.twitter.com/ZfH4u1jUzQ
— Marc Owen Jones (@marcowenjones) December 10, 2019
9/ Last one. Interestingly @allisonpearson ‘a retweet of what looks like a bot was then retweeted by @Fox_Claire (albeit with more caveats – not that it matters really) . Goes to show how potentially fake accounts and news can spread so insidious pic.twitter.com/M3RFg5C3AV
— Marc Owen Jones (@marcowenjones) December 10, 2019
10/ Important Update! Former England Cricketer @KP24 has tweeted to his over 3 million followers the same copy and paste fake news story perpetuating the myth that the boy on the hospital floor photo was staged. Crisis mode! Also good morning #GE19 pic.twitter.com/R0igVUZr9C
— Marc Owen Jones (@marcowenjones) December 10, 2019
And here are just some of the things people were saying about it.
https://twitter.com/jimwaterson/status/1204303330077560832
Disinformation being spread right now on Twitter & Facebook in real time. Excellent analysis by professor with expertise in network analysis. Last few days before election are critical moment for false info spreading. Please help it unspread https://t.co/2bfF1vdYBn
— Carole Cadwalladr (@carolecadwalla) December 10, 2019
The spread of the fake claim that the photo of Jack Williment-Barr was staged looks very much like what happened in Brazil before Bolsonaro won the election. This – in terms of its blatancy and scale – is a whole new development in the UK, and it is bloody terrifying. https://t.co/Txl07l1PZT
— George Monbiot (@GeorgeMonbiot) December 10, 2019
I didn’t think it was possible for the standards of discourse British politics to sink any lower, but it has. Despite the story being real, the Tories are trying to muddy the waters by claiming that a sick boy on the floor of a hospital in Leeds was staged by his mother. https://t.co/tmKiq6P7R6
— James Melville 🚜 (@JamesMelville) December 10, 2019
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Source @marcowenjones