Fake (or not?) Facebook stories
In this era of the spreading of Fake News, I thought I'd do my bit (to prevent it!).
More efficient than commenting on every questionable story I see, I thought I'd do a round-up.
Note:
I don't claim to be infallible (but I have done some checking of these stories):
my verdicts and analyses are not necessarily the last word on the matters!
Corrections welcome.
More recent stories towards the top.
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Fake (or not?) Facebook stories
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Claim: lots of scare-mongering about the break-down products of the sweetener aspartame, its adverse affects, and the claim by Dr Stanley Monteith that "there are extensive animal studies that show [that aspartame impacts on literally every organ in the body] and it never should've been put into our food."
Seen by me: 14/7/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: the list of break-down products is true but it is presented as though it were shocking - whereas it is mundane. The bottom line is that aspartame has been well tested and there is no evidence that it is harmful in any way - let alone affecting "literally every organ in the body".
http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/aspartame.asp
According to the British Medical Journal, http://www.bmj.com/content/329/7469/755
"The sweetener has been demonised unfairly in sections of the press and several websites.
...
Evidence does not support links between aspartame and cancer, hair loss, depression, dementia, behavioural disturbances, or any of the other conditions appearing in websites."
Note: aspartame aka NutraSweet aka Canderel
Claim: "NHS: Tories silent on roll-out of £145 charges for 40 minute GP consultation". "Tories roll out NHS charges for GPs". "Theresa May has been accused of trying to bury the news." "There has been no comment from the Conservative Party".
https://www.facebook.com/645290335533007/photos/rpp.645290335533007/1528152667246765/?type=3&theater
Seen by me: 14/7/17
Verdict: Deliberately misleading
Analysis: The actual story is that three GPs at a surgery in Bournemouth have set up a private practice for GP services. The Tories did not roll this out. Neither Theresa May nor the Conservative party have anything to do with this. Provided the GPs fulfil their NHS commitments, they are free to set up a private practice. One might regard this as creeping privatization by the back door - but that is no excuse to present it as a "roll-out" of a fee-paying GP practice.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/feb/08/two-tier-nhs-gps-allow-patients-pay-jump-the-queue-bournemouth
Claim: graphic asks if the fact that the speed of light is 299,792,458 m/s and the coordinates [sic] of the Great Pyramid of Giza are 29.9792458 degrees North is a coincidence.
Seen by me: 10/7/17
Verdict: false assertion
Analysis: Speed of light is correct but latitude of pyramid is 29.979175 degrees North. So they're not nearly as identical as claimed. Also, the speed of light is now defined rather than measured. Also, the implied accuracy of the latitude is to within 1 cm and I'm not sure it's been measured that well.
Claim: graphic has caption “Share if you think British history should be taught in our schools again” – posted by right wing Facebook group, https://www.facebook.com/OURENGLAND/
Seen by me: 8/7/17
Verdict: false implication
Analysis: clear – and false – implication that it has ceased to be taught. Deliberately-false right-wing propaganda.
Claim: hand clasping during prayer originated in slaves offering their hands to be shackled.
Seen by me: 6/7/17
Verdict: dubious
Analysis: I can't find any consensus on this and the most honest origin is probably: "no-one knows for sure".
Claim: Graphic shows Alan Greenspan and says:
“I am Alan
And, I used to run the Federal Reserve.
And, I actually said this:
If the workers are more insecure, that's very healthy for the society, because if workers are insecure they won't ask for wages, they won't go on strike, they won't call for benefits; they'll serve the masters gladly and passively. And that's optimal for corporations.”
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=1041009746033662&id=100003739406549
Seen by me: 28/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: Alan Greenspan did not say this. Noam Chomsky said it.
http://www.politifact.com/.../social-media-meme-says.../
https://www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/hh/1997/february/testimony.htm
Claim: metro-uk.com shows a BBC Breaking News graphic with the headline “Baby rescued from burnt building 12 days after London’s Grenfell Tower fire” - http://metro-uk.com/baby-rescued-12-days-after-londons-grenfell-tower-fire/. The same site also reports that 1,206 people, including competitors, have died in a fire at the main stadium at the Rio Olympics.
Seen by me: 26/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: it appears to me to be a hack of metro-uk.com or the spoofing of the whole domain since all the other “news” appears to be at least two months old
Claim: video shows railway worker bravely saving a drunk on a railway line a split second before he would have been hit by a train.
Seen by me: 23/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: manipulated video. - http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3854812/Could-tell-fake-Video-showing-rail-worker-pushing-drunk-cyclist-way-speeding-train-tricks-viewers.html
Claim: video shows 4-year-old boy playing Rondo Alla Turca (3rd movement of Piano Sonata No. 11 by Mozart) by ear. - https://www.facebook.com/NTDLifeOfficial/videos/279751835869618/?hc_ref=NEWSFEED
Seen by me: 23/6/17
Verdict: true
Analysis: the boy is Evan Le, a Vietnamese-American, whose parents have no musical ability. He really is that good.
https://www.musiccrowns.org/featured-post/evan-le-pianos-5-year-old-prodigal-son/
Claim: long quote by Arundhati Roy begins "The system ..." - https://www.facebook.com/VacateTheMilitary/photos/a.292439737622290.1073741828.292438554289075/672977542901839/?type=3&theater
Seen by me: 23/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: The actual quote is from a speech entitled “Confronting Empire” and the relevant part starts: "The corporate revolution ...", not “The system …”.
See, for example:
http://www.sterneck.net/politik/roy-empire/index.php or http://www.outlookindia.com/website/story/confronting-empire/218738
Claim: Steve Jobs' last words/essay rambles on about how the "non-stop pursuit of wealth will only turn a person into a twisted being, just like me."
Seen by me: 22/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: His last words before death, according to his sister Mona, were “Oh wow!” repeated three times after he’d stared at his sister Patty, his children and his partner.
http://www.snopes.com/steve-jobs-deathbed-speech/
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/30/opinion/mona-simpsons-eulogy-for-steve-jobs.html
Claim: Aldi car park men entice women to try perfume which they are selling for a very low price but the perfume turns out to be ether to render the woman unconscious so that her handbag can be stolen, etc.
Seen by me: 20/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: dates back to 1999 in America. Ridiculous – a few sniffs of ether would never knock anyone out. See http://www.snopes.com/crime/warnings/perfume.asp
Claim: CCTV clip shows a man being struck by lightning twice and getting up and walking away both times.
Seen by me: 20/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: photoshopped video frames. See http://www.snopes.com/photos/accident/lightning.asp
Claim: graphic implying the current pope, Pope Francis, is well qualified to comment on climate change issues because he has a Master’s degree in Chemistry.
Seen by me: 19/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: he has something that’s probably best described as a 6th form or college diploma/certificate in Chemistry.
“What he did do was graduate with a título in chemistry from the Escuela Técnica Industrial No. 12*, which is a state-run technical secondary school.” - https://www.ncronline.org/blogs/ncr-today/does-pope-francis-have-masters-degree-chemistry .
Snopes - http://www.snopes.com/politics/religion/popechemistry.asp
Claim: video shows light aircraft lose a wing in flight and somehow still manage to land on its wheels.
Seen by me: 17/6/17 and many times previously
Verdict: fake
Analysis: the in-air shots are of a model aircraft. The video was produced to advertise the German clothing company killathrill whose name is on the plane. See http://www.snopes.com/photos/airplane/onewing.asp.
Claim: the novel “1984” by George Orwell contains the quote: “The people will not revolt. They will not look up from their screens long enough to notice what is happening.” And so “George Orwell is a prophet”. https://www.facebook.com/thefreethoughtprojectcom/photos/a.1427971987423064.1073741828.1425604894326440/1953161484904109/?type=3&theater
Seen by me: 16/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: for a start, the novel is called “Nineteen Eighty-Four”, not “1984”. But, more importantly, neither that quote nor anything remotely like it occurs in the novel. I checked several versions of the full text, for example: http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks01/0100021.txt
It looks like the quote is from a 2013 play based on the book. http://www.news.com.au/.../1b33db339627e88e59171c8d4ffa026d
Claim: do not say “Yes” if someone ’phones you and says “Can you hear me?”. They’ll record it and use it to fake your consent to all sorts of things! http://www.globetoday.com/police-warn-dont-say-yes-to-can-you-hear-me-phone-call-its-a-scam/
Seen by me: 15/6/17 and many times previously
Verdict: false
Analysis: no verified cases and, how would it even work?! Widely-spread scare story. http://www.snopes.com/can-you-hear-me-scam/
Claim: U.S. Navy aircraft carrier group orders unknown vessel to change course over the radio to avoid collision. Turns out that the unknown vessel is a lighthouse. https://www.facebook.com/brunonumerouno/videos/10152540151601966/?pnref=story
Seen by me: 15/6/17 and dozens of times previously over the last 20+ years
Verdict: false
Analysis: no matter how hilarious it is and how often it is claimed to be a “genuine conversation” and in how many variants it appears, it never happened. http://www.snopes.com/military/lighthouse.asp, http://www.navy.mil/navydata/nav_legacy.asp?id=174
The earliest variant of the joke is from 1931 (not on the Interweb, obviously!)
Claim: young (18-24 years old) voter turnout at the 2017 UK General Election was 72%.
Seen by me: many times after the election period
Verdict: false
Analysis: the original claim apparently came from a tweet by Alex Cairns, a blogger at HuffPost: “My contacts are telling me that the turnout from 18-24 year olds will be around 72/73%! Finally the Youth have turnedddd out!!”. A few hours later, the president of the NUS tweeted, “Early reports suggest that 72% of 18-24s voted. Some people are surprised. We are not. #GenerationVote”.
We now have the results of a YouGov survey of 52,615 adults and the figure for 18-24 year olds is around 58% (https://yougov.co.uk/news/2017/06/13/how-britain-voted-2017-general-election/). This is substantially higher than 2015 (43%) and 2010 (44%) (https://www.ipsos.com/ipsos-mori/en-uk/how-britain-voted-2015?language_content_entity=en-uk) but substantially lower than was claimed (72%) or even the population as a whole (69%).
Claim: “See-Through Lace Shorts For Men Are Summer's Biggest Fashion Trend” – linked to http://www.distractify.com/trending/2017/06/05/17haiX/see-through-lace-shorts-for-men?dfy
Seen by me: 14/7/17
Verdict: false – marketing hype
Analysis: Even the article says they were only produced for a music video by gay rapper, Cazwell, and uses the words, “if they become more mainstream”. According to a MailOnline article on June 14th, “They are available for pre-order now and will ship later in the month”. According to the HologramCity website, the shorts (at $49) don’t ship until June 16th, so they cannot be a fashion trend, already.
Claim: Temperatures are predicted to reach 30 degrees at the weekend in southern Britain, almost double the usual average of 17 degrees for this time of year.
Link to http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/15344999.Feeling_hot__hot__hot__Dorset_set_to_sizzle_in_weekend_heatwave/#comments-anchor
Seen by me: 13/6/17
Verdict: Numerically true (assuming Celsius) but meaningless
Analysis: A ratio of two non-absolute temperatures is physically meaningless since it depends which units you are using. 30C might be 2x15C but in Fahrenheit, this would be 86F=1.5x59F. A true ratio is only obtained in an absolute scale (one where absolute zero has value zero). In the (absolute) Kelvin scale, the relation is actually seen to be 303.15K=1.05x288.15K, so the temperature ratio is not “almost double” - it is “increased by almost 5%”.
Claim: “Kidnapper at the gas station” story presented as having happened “to a friend”. http://www.upliftmore.com/she-hesitated-when-a-guy-kept-calling-her-to-come-to-him-at-gas-station-but-was-glad-she-did/
Seen by me: 12/6/17
Verdict: ancient (1967) scare story
Analysis: http://www.snopes.com/horrors/madmen/backseat.asp.
Claim: List of Five things you need to know about DUP politicians and science includes their policy on abortion. (https://www.facebook.com/scientistsforeu/?hc_ref=NEWSFEED&fref=nf post linking https://www.newscientist.com/article/2134162-five-things-you-need-to-know-about-dup-politicians-and-science )
Seen by me: 10/6/17
Verdict: Blunder by New Scientist magazine
Analysis: Legal/moral/ethical/religious arguments about the availability of abortion are not science.
Claim: post of Daily Telegraph report of BBC news item claiming Jeremy Corbyn is not happy with a shoot-to-kill policy if terrorists are attacking Britain - https://www.facebook.com/mariabed/posts/10155329035230480?pnref=story
Seen by me: 5/6/17
Verdict: old news that was subsequently shown to be a misrepresentation of Corbyn in a BBC interview
Analysis: this is quite long-winded to explain. The Telegraph report (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/Jeremy_Corbyn/11999218/Jeremy-Corbyn-Im-not-happy-with-shoot-to-kill-policy-if-terrorists-are-attacking-Britain.html) comes from 16/11/15 which reported on a BBC interview (see “Laura Kuenssberg” story below) so, for a start, it’s very old news. But, in fact, as I pointed out in the story below, the BBC interview was subjected to investigation by the BBC Trust which found that Corbyn’s “not happy with” was in response to a more general question than the one Kuenssberg said she had asked.
Specifically, this was the true exchange:
Kuenssberg: "If you were prime minister, would you be happy to order people - police or military - to shoot to kill on Britain's streets?"
Corbyn: "I am not happy with a shoot to kill policy in general. I think that is quite dangerous and I think can often be counter-productive."
And this was the way it seemed on the BBC News report:
Kuenssberg: "If [you] were the resident here at Number 10 … would [you] be happy for British officers to pull the trigger in the event of a Paris-style attack?"
Corbyn: "I am not happy with a shoot to kill policy in general. I think that is quite dangerous and I think can often be counter-productive."
His actual reply to the “Paris-style” question was:
Corbyn: "Of course you'd bring people onto the streets to prevent and ensure there is safety within our society."
Claim: The Daily Politik: The nuclear bomb in Hiroshima was weak in comparison to today's nukes. One bomb dropped on New York City would take out the entire state and render the surrounding states unlivable - not to mention the damage to the oceans.
https://www.facebook.com/TheDailyPolitik/photos/rpp.959780427477483/1216529188469271/?type=3&theater
Seen by me: 4/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: a 20MT (that’s 17 times the largest warhead the US has in operation – the USSR used to have a ~20MT warhead missile in the ’70s) airburst at 5400m height causes medium damage or worse out to 47 km and first degree burns or worse out to 53 km. NY State is 455km x 530km. No operational H-bomb, old or new, US or Russian, could “take out” more than about 3% of the area of New York State.
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effects_of_nuclear_explosions
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R-36_(missile)
Claim: Theresa May pays £400-£520 per month for a cleaner on expenses. Also claimed for a £1.59 paper clip etc.
https://www.facebook.com/AllUnderOneBanner/photos/a.649474145151375.1073741828.649195548512568/1263557567076360/?type=3&theater
Seen by me: 3/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: I can find no evidence to back this up. May’s actual expenses are here:
http://www.mpsexpenses.info/#!/mp/643 and show:
1 Dec 2015 — 30 Nov 2016
Total claimed: £4,294.44 *
Number of items claimed for: 14
Possibly part of a Tory smear campaign
Claim: Hermann Goering once said: “The people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country”
Seen by me: 31/5/17
Verdict: true
Analysis: the words were said, privately, to Gustave Gilbert, a German-speaking American intelligence officer and psychologist, in Goering’s cell during a recess at the Nuremberg trials. There is no reason to dispute Gilbert’s word. Full story at http://www.snopes.com/quotes/goering.asp
Claim: “The BBC relies on the Conservative Party for 73% of its statistics” which links to a voxpoliticalonline article.
Seen by me: 18/5/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: the article (http://voxpoliticalonline.com/2016/08/10/bbc-impartiality-in-tatters-as-report-reveals-corporation-relies-on-tories-for-statistics/) gives no references but links to a Guardian story (https://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/aug/10/bbc-tory-government-statistics-conservatives). The Guardian story gives no references for the study either.
I found the actual study - it's http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/assets/files/pdf/our_work/stats_impartiality/report.pdf . There, we find (page 55) that this "73 per cent" figure is actually 73% of 21% which is approximately 15%.
Claim: Headline “5 Vegetable Oils You Should Stop Using Right Now!” with link to curejoy.com article which claims “Recent research has however shown that vegetable oils may not be all that good as recommended”.
Seen by me: 17/5/17
Verdict: unsubstantiated
Analysis: no references to the source of the alleged research are given – not even in the “FURTHER READING” section.
Claim: Spooky story by astronaut Barry Wilmore: “You never know true beauty until you see Earth from space, or true terror until you hear someone knocking on the space station door from outside. You look through the porthole and see an astronaut, but all your crew is inside and accounted for. You use the comm to ask who it is and he says he’s Ramirez returning from a repair mission, but Ramirez is sitting right next to you in the command module and he’s just as confused as you are. When you tell the guy this over the radio he starts banging on the door louder and harder, begging you to let him in, saying he’s the real Ramirez. Meanwhile, the Ramirez inside with you is pleading to keep the airlock shut. It really puts life on Earth into perspective.”
Seen by me: 12/5/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: There's never been an astronaut "Ramirez" and certainly not on Wilmore's missions STS-129 and TMA-14M, nor on the ISS at any time.
Claim: photo shows Mercury, Venus and Saturn neatly aligned above the pyramids of Giza, Egypt. Claims that this occurs once every 2,373 years.
Seen by me: 7/5/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: The photo is a fake. Vaguely similar conjunctions do occur but they’re not particularly uncommon. See http://www.snopes.com/science/astronomy/giza.asp (which uses an interval of 2,737 years).
Claim: “24 A&E units marked for closure after the election” (National Health Action Party Facebook group post)
Seen by me: 6/5/17
Verdict: true, although it’s “potential closure” rather than “closure”
Analysis: The claim relates to research done by Johnston Press plc who looked at 44 regional NHS-remodelling blueprints. They found that 24 casualty units have been marked for potential closure. In the “full list” of units, the numbers appear a little different. They list 7 for which there are “Active plans for closure or downgrade” and 26 “Facing closure or downgrade in [Sustainability and Transformation Plans] documents (no firm proposal yet made)”. Report in iNews: https://inews.co.uk/nhs/nhs-crisis-revealed-overhaul-means-dozens-of-ae-units-face-closure/ .
[To put the numbers in perspective, according to the report, there is a current total of 175 units.]
Claim: “Chechen authorities ‘summon parents to prison camps to kill their gay sons’ ” (linked to attitude.co.uk story)
Seen by me: 4/5/17
Verdict: true, the evidence suggests
Analysis: There is a Wikipedia article on this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gay_concentration_camps_in_Chechnya#Large-scale_raids_and_killings
Within it, there is a reference to a Human Rights Watch article: https://www.hrw.org/news/2017/04/04/anti-lgbt-violence-chechnya which states: “LGBT people are in danger not only of persecution by the authorities but also of falling victim to “honour killings” by their own relatives for tarnishing family honor.”. In another reference, in International Business Times, an LGBT activist is quoted as saying: “"Sometimes people are released from prisons because the authorities know they are going to be killed by the family."” (http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/deadly-anti-lgbt-crisis-unfolding-chechnya-1616551?utm_campaign=/deadly-anti-lgbt-crisis-unfolding-chechnya-1616551). The original source seems to be a report published in the independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta.
Claim: ‘Tory MP [Richard Graham MP] lying that permanent degenerative diseases “get better”’ on “Another Angry Voice” Facebook page
Seen by me: 3/5/17
Verdict: mixed
Analysis: Having reviewed the Victoria Derbyshire footage on YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3QTyatGBHA, my interpretation is that by “get better”, he meant “improve”, rather than “go away completely”. The question, then, is whether someone with a so-described condition can experience short-term improvement in the symptoms associated with it. I can’t say for sure – I would think it’s possible. In addition, he did not say “permanent degenerative diseases” (in general) – he said “some ... conditions … do get better”.
Claim: Photo shows a funeral directors’ shop named “Strong and Stable Independent Family Funeral Directors” on the “Britain Against Britain First” Facebook page.
Seen by me: 3/5/17
Verdict: probably fake
Analysis: An internet search has failed to find any such business. A name search at Companies’ House website failed to find any company with that name. Window display does not look consistent with a funeral directors’. Probably a doctored photo lampooning Teresa May’s election catchphrase.
Claim: “Just ONE WEEK left to use old £5 notes before they become void” with link to mirror.co.uk story
Seen by me: 1/5/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: The Mirror story linked gives the correct information but the headline/link is wrong: as long as the Bank of England exists, the notes will never become “void”.
Claim: List of “Tips to look after your husband” claims to be from a 1950 Home Economics textbook
Seen by me: 29/4/17
Verdict: false – but similar lists did exist
Analysis: The actual list I saw is a fabrication, according to Snopes: http://www.snopes.com/history/document/goodwife.asp although similar lists of Dos and Don’ts did exist at the time.
Claim: “Theresa May SLAMMED by Muslim MPs for scheduling election during RAMADAN”
Seen by me: 28/4/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: even the article linked (http://yourbrexit.co.uk/news/theresa-may-slammed-muslim-mps-scheduling-election-ramadan/?utm_source=bb) does not give a single MP who “SLAMMED” the timing. Comments given by two Muslim MPs said it was “not ideal” and “unfortunate”. The Muslim Council of Britain “saw no problem with the Prime Minister’s decision”
Claim: UK National Debt Clock increases by 45.458 pond [sic] per second
Seen by me: 27/4/17
Verdict: Doesn’t make mathematical, spelling or punctuational sense.
Analysis: The link claims £5,170 per second. According to http://www.ukpublicspending.co.uk/spending_chart_2010_2020UKb_17c1li011tcn_G0t, I estimate it’s about £100 bn/year or £3,200 per second.
Claim: Drinking diet soda (artificially-sweetened fizzy drinks) increases the risk of strokes
Seen by me: 27/4/17
Verdict: an association between the two things is true (and statistically significant) (according to a cohort study by Boston University School of Medicine, published in 2017); but this does not show that one causes the other as the claim states.
Analysis: I tracked down the actual report in the AHA journal “Stroke”:
http://stroke.ahajournals.org/content/early/2017/04/20/STROKEAHA.116.016027.full.pdf.
2888 participants aged >45 years. Hazard ratios (normalized to those drinking no diet soda) were 2.96 (95% confidence interval, 1.26–6.97) for ischaemic stroke and 2.89 (95% confidence interval, 1.18–7.07) for Alzheimer’s disease. Note, however, that accepted medical wisdom based on studies from the 1990s onwards has found no increase. Not also that this study is very recent and time will tell whether its conclusions stand up to scrutiny. Note also that this is a “cohort study” and not an (evidentially-superior) randomized controlled trial.
Claim: photo shows Jimmy Savile campaigning for Conservatives in 2010 in front of VW van.
Seen by me: 27/4/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: this is a hoax. The original photo has no writing on the van and it's an advert for the VW van. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/12177987/Jimmy-Savile-Vote-Conservative-hoax-spreads-on-social-media.html
It’s a deliberate attempt to smear Conservatives with doctored photo.
Claim: world population increasing by over a million per week.
Seen by me: 26/4/17
Verdict: true.
Analysis: accurate statement of fact. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Population_growth says: Global human population growth amounts to around 75 million annually, or 1.1% per year. 75 divided by 52 weeks in a year yields well over one million per week.
Claim: carcinogen arsenic in rice and rice products is a cause for concern
Seen by me: 26/4/17
Verdict: unsure.
Analysis: it's a small Swedish study.
Haven't read the original report but I haven't noticed any wide-scale government advice to avoid rice.
Claim: Laura Kuenssberg (BBC correspondent) invented fake news about Jeremy Corbyn
Seen by me: 25/4/17
Verdict: exaggeration
Analysis: See the full text of the BBC Trust report at http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/assets/files/pdf/appeals/esc_bulletins/2017/jan.pdf.
If one accepts the Trust’s report findings, then BBC News was reprimanded by the BBC Trust for inaccuracy but not dishonesty.
"Although Trustees considered it [the BBC] was not duly accurate ..."
"The Committee found no evidence that there was a deliberate attempt to mislead audiences ... ."
"Trustees had no reason to doubt that the report for the News at Six had been compiled in good faith."
"But Trustees agreed that there was no evidence of bias or any intent by the BBC or any individual to misrepresent Mr Corbyn’s position."
If one does NOT accept the Trust’s report findings, then it is, of course, possible that this was an attempt to misrepresent the Labour leader.
Claim: picture says 7 species of bee have been put on endangered list. Implies we're facing possible bee extinction.
Seen by me: many times pre-25/4/17
Verdict: partly true, but deliberately misleading
Analysis: All seven species are closely related and all are native to Hawaii. No other bee species are endangered, as far as I can tell.
More efficient than commenting on every questionable story I see, I thought I'd do a round-up.
Note:
I don't claim to be infallible (but I have done some checking of these stories):
my verdicts and analyses are not necessarily the last word on the matters!
Corrections welcome.
More recent stories towards the top.
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Fake (or not?) Facebook stories
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Claim: lots of scare-mongering about the break-down products of the sweetener aspartame, its adverse affects, and the claim by Dr Stanley Monteith that "there are extensive animal studies that show [that aspartame impacts on literally every organ in the body] and it never should've been put into our food."
Seen by me: 14/7/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: the list of break-down products is true but it is presented as though it were shocking - whereas it is mundane. The bottom line is that aspartame has been well tested and there is no evidence that it is harmful in any way - let alone affecting "literally every organ in the body".
http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/aspartame.asp
According to the British Medical Journal, http://www.bmj.com/content/329/7469/755
"The sweetener has been demonised unfairly in sections of the press and several websites.
...
Evidence does not support links between aspartame and cancer, hair loss, depression, dementia, behavioural disturbances, or any of the other conditions appearing in websites."
Note: aspartame aka NutraSweet aka Canderel
Claim: "NHS: Tories silent on roll-out of £145 charges for 40 minute GP consultation". "Tories roll out NHS charges for GPs". "Theresa May has been accused of trying to bury the news." "There has been no comment from the Conservative Party".
https://www.facebook.com/645290335533007/photos/rpp.645290335533007/1528152667246765/?type=3&theater
Seen by me: 14/7/17
Verdict: Deliberately misleading
Analysis: The actual story is that three GPs at a surgery in Bournemouth have set up a private practice for GP services. The Tories did not roll this out. Neither Theresa May nor the Conservative party have anything to do with this. Provided the GPs fulfil their NHS commitments, they are free to set up a private practice. One might regard this as creeping privatization by the back door - but that is no excuse to present it as a "roll-out" of a fee-paying GP practice.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/feb/08/two-tier-nhs-gps-allow-patients-pay-jump-the-queue-bournemouth
Claim: graphic asks if the fact that the speed of light is 299,792,458 m/s and the coordinates [sic] of the Great Pyramid of Giza are 29.9792458 degrees North is a coincidence.
Seen by me: 10/7/17
Verdict: false assertion
Analysis: Speed of light is correct but latitude of pyramid is 29.979175 degrees North. So they're not nearly as identical as claimed. Also, the speed of light is now defined rather than measured. Also, the implied accuracy of the latitude is to within 1 cm and I'm not sure it's been measured that well.
Claim: graphic has caption “Share if you think British history should be taught in our schools again” – posted by right wing Facebook group, https://www.facebook.com/OURENGLAND/
Seen by me: 8/7/17
Verdict: false implication
Analysis: clear – and false – implication that it has ceased to be taught. Deliberately-false right-wing propaganda.
Claim: hand clasping during prayer originated in slaves offering their hands to be shackled.
Seen by me: 6/7/17
Verdict: dubious
Analysis: I can't find any consensus on this and the most honest origin is probably: "no-one knows for sure".
Claim: Graphic shows Alan Greenspan and says:
“I am Alan
And, I used to run the Federal Reserve.
And, I actually said this:
If the workers are more insecure, that's very healthy for the society, because if workers are insecure they won't ask for wages, they won't go on strike, they won't call for benefits; they'll serve the masters gladly and passively. And that's optimal for corporations.”
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=1041009746033662&id=100003739406549
Seen by me: 28/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: Alan Greenspan did not say this. Noam Chomsky said it.
http://www.politifact.com/.../social-media-meme-says.../
https://www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/hh/1997/february/testimony.htm
Claim: metro-uk.com shows a BBC Breaking News graphic with the headline “Baby rescued from burnt building 12 days after London’s Grenfell Tower fire” - http://metro-uk.com/baby-rescued-12-days-after-londons-grenfell-tower-fire/. The same site also reports that 1,206 people, including competitors, have died in a fire at the main stadium at the Rio Olympics.
Seen by me: 26/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: it appears to me to be a hack of metro-uk.com or the spoofing of the whole domain since all the other “news” appears to be at least two months old
Claim: video shows railway worker bravely saving a drunk on a railway line a split second before he would have been hit by a train.
Seen by me: 23/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: manipulated video. - http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3854812/Could-tell-fake-Video-showing-rail-worker-pushing-drunk-cyclist-way-speeding-train-tricks-viewers.html
Claim: video shows 4-year-old boy playing Rondo Alla Turca (3rd movement of Piano Sonata No. 11 by Mozart) by ear. - https://www.facebook.com/NTDLifeOfficial/videos/279751835869618/?hc_ref=NEWSFEED
Seen by me: 23/6/17
Verdict: true
Analysis: the boy is Evan Le, a Vietnamese-American, whose parents have no musical ability. He really is that good.
https://www.musiccrowns.org/featured-post/evan-le-pianos-5-year-old-prodigal-son/
Claim: long quote by Arundhati Roy begins "The system ..." - https://www.facebook.com/VacateTheMilitary/photos/a.292439737622290.1073741828.292438554289075/672977542901839/?type=3&theater
Seen by me: 23/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: The actual quote is from a speech entitled “Confronting Empire” and the relevant part starts: "The corporate revolution ...", not “The system …”.
See, for example:
http://www.sterneck.net/politik/roy-empire/index.php or http://www.outlookindia.com/website/story/confronting-empire/218738
Claim: Steve Jobs' last words/essay rambles on about how the "non-stop pursuit of wealth will only turn a person into a twisted being, just like me."
Seen by me: 22/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: His last words before death, according to his sister Mona, were “Oh wow!” repeated three times after he’d stared at his sister Patty, his children and his partner.
http://www.snopes.com/steve-jobs-deathbed-speech/
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/30/opinion/mona-simpsons-eulogy-for-steve-jobs.html
Claim: Aldi car park men entice women to try perfume which they are selling for a very low price but the perfume turns out to be ether to render the woman unconscious so that her handbag can be stolen, etc.
Seen by me: 20/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: dates back to 1999 in America. Ridiculous – a few sniffs of ether would never knock anyone out. See http://www.snopes.com/crime/warnings/perfume.asp
Claim: CCTV clip shows a man being struck by lightning twice and getting up and walking away both times.
Seen by me: 20/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: photoshopped video frames. See http://www.snopes.com/photos/accident/lightning.asp
Claim: graphic implying the current pope, Pope Francis, is well qualified to comment on climate change issues because he has a Master’s degree in Chemistry.
Seen by me: 19/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: he has something that’s probably best described as a 6th form or college diploma/certificate in Chemistry.
“What he did do was graduate with a título in chemistry from the Escuela Técnica Industrial No. 12*, which is a state-run technical secondary school.” - https://www.ncronline.org/blogs/ncr-today/does-pope-francis-have-masters-degree-chemistry .
Snopes - http://www.snopes.com/politics/religion/popechemistry.asp
Claim: video shows light aircraft lose a wing in flight and somehow still manage to land on its wheels.
Seen by me: 17/6/17 and many times previously
Verdict: fake
Analysis: the in-air shots are of a model aircraft. The video was produced to advertise the German clothing company killathrill whose name is on the plane. See http://www.snopes.com/photos/airplane/onewing.asp.
Claim: the novel “1984” by George Orwell contains the quote: “The people will not revolt. They will not look up from their screens long enough to notice what is happening.” And so “George Orwell is a prophet”. https://www.facebook.com/thefreethoughtprojectcom/photos/a.1427971987423064.1073741828.1425604894326440/1953161484904109/?type=3&theater
Seen by me: 16/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: for a start, the novel is called “Nineteen Eighty-Four”, not “1984”. But, more importantly, neither that quote nor anything remotely like it occurs in the novel. I checked several versions of the full text, for example: http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks01/0100021.txt
It looks like the quote is from a 2013 play based on the book. http://www.news.com.au/.../1b33db339627e88e59171c8d4ffa026d
Claim: do not say “Yes” if someone ’phones you and says “Can you hear me?”. They’ll record it and use it to fake your consent to all sorts of things! http://www.globetoday.com/police-warn-dont-say-yes-to-can-you-hear-me-phone-call-its-a-scam/
Seen by me: 15/6/17 and many times previously
Verdict: false
Analysis: no verified cases and, how would it even work?! Widely-spread scare story. http://www.snopes.com/can-you-hear-me-scam/
Claim: U.S. Navy aircraft carrier group orders unknown vessel to change course over the radio to avoid collision. Turns out that the unknown vessel is a lighthouse. https://www.facebook.com/brunonumerouno/videos/10152540151601966/?pnref=story
Seen by me: 15/6/17 and dozens of times previously over the last 20+ years
Verdict: false
Analysis: no matter how hilarious it is and how often it is claimed to be a “genuine conversation” and in how many variants it appears, it never happened. http://www.snopes.com/military/lighthouse.asp, http://www.navy.mil/navydata/nav_legacy.asp?id=174
The earliest variant of the joke is from 1931 (not on the Interweb, obviously!)
Claim: young (18-24 years old) voter turnout at the 2017 UK General Election was 72%.
Seen by me: many times after the election period
Verdict: false
Analysis: the original claim apparently came from a tweet by Alex Cairns, a blogger at HuffPost: “My contacts are telling me that the turnout from 18-24 year olds will be around 72/73%! Finally the Youth have turnedddd out!!”. A few hours later, the president of the NUS tweeted, “Early reports suggest that 72% of 18-24s voted. Some people are surprised. We are not. #GenerationVote”.
We now have the results of a YouGov survey of 52,615 adults and the figure for 18-24 year olds is around 58% (https://yougov.co.uk/news/2017/06/13/how-britain-voted-2017-general-election/). This is substantially higher than 2015 (43%) and 2010 (44%) (https://www.ipsos.com/ipsos-mori/en-uk/how-britain-voted-2015?language_content_entity=en-uk) but substantially lower than was claimed (72%) or even the population as a whole (69%).
Claim: “See-Through Lace Shorts For Men Are Summer's Biggest Fashion Trend” – linked to http://www.distractify.com/trending/2017/06/05/17haiX/see-through-lace-shorts-for-men?dfy
Seen by me: 14/7/17
Verdict: false – marketing hype
Analysis: Even the article says they were only produced for a music video by gay rapper, Cazwell, and uses the words, “if they become more mainstream”. According to a MailOnline article on June 14th, “They are available for pre-order now and will ship later in the month”. According to the HologramCity website, the shorts (at $49) don’t ship until June 16th, so they cannot be a fashion trend, already.
Claim: Temperatures are predicted to reach 30 degrees at the weekend in southern Britain, almost double the usual average of 17 degrees for this time of year.
Link to http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/15344999.Feeling_hot__hot__hot__Dorset_set_to_sizzle_in_weekend_heatwave/#comments-anchor
Seen by me: 13/6/17
Verdict: Numerically true (assuming Celsius) but meaningless
Analysis: A ratio of two non-absolute temperatures is physically meaningless since it depends which units you are using. 30C might be 2x15C but in Fahrenheit, this would be 86F=1.5x59F. A true ratio is only obtained in an absolute scale (one where absolute zero has value zero). In the (absolute) Kelvin scale, the relation is actually seen to be 303.15K=1.05x288.15K, so the temperature ratio is not “almost double” - it is “increased by almost 5%”.
Claim: “Kidnapper at the gas station” story presented as having happened “to a friend”. http://www.upliftmore.com/she-hesitated-when-a-guy-kept-calling-her-to-come-to-him-at-gas-station-but-was-glad-she-did/
Seen by me: 12/6/17
Verdict: ancient (1967) scare story
Analysis: http://www.snopes.com/horrors/madmen/backseat.asp.
Claim: List of Five things you need to know about DUP politicians and science includes their policy on abortion. (https://www.facebook.com/scientistsforeu/?hc_ref=NEWSFEED&fref=nf post linking https://www.newscientist.com/article/2134162-five-things-you-need-to-know-about-dup-politicians-and-science )
Seen by me: 10/6/17
Verdict: Blunder by New Scientist magazine
Analysis: Legal/moral/ethical/religious arguments about the availability of abortion are not science.
Claim: post of Daily Telegraph report of BBC news item claiming Jeremy Corbyn is not happy with a shoot-to-kill policy if terrorists are attacking Britain - https://www.facebook.com/mariabed/posts/10155329035230480?pnref=story
Seen by me: 5/6/17
Verdict: old news that was subsequently shown to be a misrepresentation of Corbyn in a BBC interview
Analysis: this is quite long-winded to explain. The Telegraph report (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/Jeremy_Corbyn/11999218/Jeremy-Corbyn-Im-not-happy-with-shoot-to-kill-policy-if-terrorists-are-attacking-Britain.html) comes from 16/11/15 which reported on a BBC interview (see “Laura Kuenssberg” story below) so, for a start, it’s very old news. But, in fact, as I pointed out in the story below, the BBC interview was subjected to investigation by the BBC Trust which found that Corbyn’s “not happy with” was in response to a more general question than the one Kuenssberg said she had asked.
Specifically, this was the true exchange:
Kuenssberg: "If you were prime minister, would you be happy to order people - police or military - to shoot to kill on Britain's streets?"
Corbyn: "I am not happy with a shoot to kill policy in general. I think that is quite dangerous and I think can often be counter-productive."
And this was the way it seemed on the BBC News report:
Kuenssberg: "If [you] were the resident here at Number 10 … would [you] be happy for British officers to pull the trigger in the event of a Paris-style attack?"
Corbyn: "I am not happy with a shoot to kill policy in general. I think that is quite dangerous and I think can often be counter-productive."
His actual reply to the “Paris-style” question was:
Corbyn: "Of course you'd bring people onto the streets to prevent and ensure there is safety within our society."
Claim: The Daily Politik: The nuclear bomb in Hiroshima was weak in comparison to today's nukes. One bomb dropped on New York City would take out the entire state and render the surrounding states unlivable - not to mention the damage to the oceans.
https://www.facebook.com/TheDailyPolitik/photos/rpp.959780427477483/1216529188469271/?type=3&theater
Seen by me: 4/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: a 20MT (that’s 17 times the largest warhead the US has in operation – the USSR used to have a ~20MT warhead missile in the ’70s) airburst at 5400m height causes medium damage or worse out to 47 km and first degree burns or worse out to 53 km. NY State is 455km x 530km. No operational H-bomb, old or new, US or Russian, could “take out” more than about 3% of the area of New York State.
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effects_of_nuclear_explosions
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R-36_(missile)
Claim: Theresa May pays £400-£520 per month for a cleaner on expenses. Also claimed for a £1.59 paper clip etc.
https://www.facebook.com/AllUnderOneBanner/photos/a.649474145151375.1073741828.649195548512568/1263557567076360/?type=3&theater
Seen by me: 3/6/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: I can find no evidence to back this up. May’s actual expenses are here:
http://www.mpsexpenses.info/#!/mp/643 and show:
1 Dec 2015 — 30 Nov 2016
Total claimed: £4,294.44 *
Number of items claimed for: 14
Possibly part of a Tory smear campaign
Claim: Hermann Goering once said: “The people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country”
Seen by me: 31/5/17
Verdict: true
Analysis: the words were said, privately, to Gustave Gilbert, a German-speaking American intelligence officer and psychologist, in Goering’s cell during a recess at the Nuremberg trials. There is no reason to dispute Gilbert’s word. Full story at http://www.snopes.com/quotes/goering.asp
Claim: “The BBC relies on the Conservative Party for 73% of its statistics” which links to a voxpoliticalonline article.
Seen by me: 18/5/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: the article (http://voxpoliticalonline.com/2016/08/10/bbc-impartiality-in-tatters-as-report-reveals-corporation-relies-on-tories-for-statistics/) gives no references but links to a Guardian story (https://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/aug/10/bbc-tory-government-statistics-conservatives). The Guardian story gives no references for the study either.
I found the actual study - it's http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/assets/files/pdf/our_work/stats_impartiality/report.pdf . There, we find (page 55) that this "73 per cent" figure is actually 73% of 21% which is approximately 15%.
Claim: Headline “5 Vegetable Oils You Should Stop Using Right Now!” with link to curejoy.com article which claims “Recent research has however shown that vegetable oils may not be all that good as recommended”.
Seen by me: 17/5/17
Verdict: unsubstantiated
Analysis: no references to the source of the alleged research are given – not even in the “FURTHER READING” section.
Claim: Spooky story by astronaut Barry Wilmore: “You never know true beauty until you see Earth from space, or true terror until you hear someone knocking on the space station door from outside. You look through the porthole and see an astronaut, but all your crew is inside and accounted for. You use the comm to ask who it is and he says he’s Ramirez returning from a repair mission, but Ramirez is sitting right next to you in the command module and he’s just as confused as you are. When you tell the guy this over the radio he starts banging on the door louder and harder, begging you to let him in, saying he’s the real Ramirez. Meanwhile, the Ramirez inside with you is pleading to keep the airlock shut. It really puts life on Earth into perspective.”
Seen by me: 12/5/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: There's never been an astronaut "Ramirez" and certainly not on Wilmore's missions STS-129 and TMA-14M, nor on the ISS at any time.
Claim: photo shows Mercury, Venus and Saturn neatly aligned above the pyramids of Giza, Egypt. Claims that this occurs once every 2,373 years.
Seen by me: 7/5/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: The photo is a fake. Vaguely similar conjunctions do occur but they’re not particularly uncommon. See http://www.snopes.com/science/astronomy/giza.asp (which uses an interval of 2,737 years).
Claim: “24 A&E units marked for closure after the election” (National Health Action Party Facebook group post)
Seen by me: 6/5/17
Verdict: true, although it’s “potential closure” rather than “closure”
Analysis: The claim relates to research done by Johnston Press plc who looked at 44 regional NHS-remodelling blueprints. They found that 24 casualty units have been marked for potential closure. In the “full list” of units, the numbers appear a little different. They list 7 for which there are “Active plans for closure or downgrade” and 26 “Facing closure or downgrade in [Sustainability and Transformation Plans] documents (no firm proposal yet made)”. Report in iNews: https://inews.co.uk/nhs/nhs-crisis-revealed-overhaul-means-dozens-of-ae-units-face-closure/ .
[To put the numbers in perspective, according to the report, there is a current total of 175 units.]
Claim: “Chechen authorities ‘summon parents to prison camps to kill their gay sons’ ” (linked to attitude.co.uk story)
Seen by me: 4/5/17
Verdict: true, the evidence suggests
Analysis: There is a Wikipedia article on this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gay_concentration_camps_in_Chechnya#Large-scale_raids_and_killings
Within it, there is a reference to a Human Rights Watch article: https://www.hrw.org/news/2017/04/04/anti-lgbt-violence-chechnya which states: “LGBT people are in danger not only of persecution by the authorities but also of falling victim to “honour killings” by their own relatives for tarnishing family honor.”. In another reference, in International Business Times, an LGBT activist is quoted as saying: “"Sometimes people are released from prisons because the authorities know they are going to be killed by the family."” (http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/deadly-anti-lgbt-crisis-unfolding-chechnya-1616551?utm_campaign=/deadly-anti-lgbt-crisis-unfolding-chechnya-1616551). The original source seems to be a report published in the independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta.
Claim: ‘Tory MP [Richard Graham MP] lying that permanent degenerative diseases “get better”’ on “Another Angry Voice” Facebook page
Seen by me: 3/5/17
Verdict: mixed
Analysis: Having reviewed the Victoria Derbyshire footage on YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3QTyatGBHA, my interpretation is that by “get better”, he meant “improve”, rather than “go away completely”. The question, then, is whether someone with a so-described condition can experience short-term improvement in the symptoms associated with it. I can’t say for sure – I would think it’s possible. In addition, he did not say “permanent degenerative diseases” (in general) – he said “some ... conditions … do get better”.
Claim: Photo shows a funeral directors’ shop named “Strong and Stable Independent Family Funeral Directors” on the “Britain Against Britain First” Facebook page.
Seen by me: 3/5/17
Verdict: probably fake
Analysis: An internet search has failed to find any such business. A name search at Companies’ House website failed to find any company with that name. Window display does not look consistent with a funeral directors’. Probably a doctored photo lampooning Teresa May’s election catchphrase.
Claim: “Just ONE WEEK left to use old £5 notes before they become void” with link to mirror.co.uk story
Seen by me: 1/5/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: The Mirror story linked gives the correct information but the headline/link is wrong: as long as the Bank of England exists, the notes will never become “void”.
Claim: List of “Tips to look after your husband” claims to be from a 1950 Home Economics textbook
Seen by me: 29/4/17
Verdict: false – but similar lists did exist
Analysis: The actual list I saw is a fabrication, according to Snopes: http://www.snopes.com/history/document/goodwife.asp although similar lists of Dos and Don’ts did exist at the time.
Claim: “Theresa May SLAMMED by Muslim MPs for scheduling election during RAMADAN”
Seen by me: 28/4/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: even the article linked (http://yourbrexit.co.uk/news/theresa-may-slammed-muslim-mps-scheduling-election-ramadan/?utm_source=bb) does not give a single MP who “SLAMMED” the timing. Comments given by two Muslim MPs said it was “not ideal” and “unfortunate”. The Muslim Council of Britain “saw no problem with the Prime Minister’s decision”
Claim: UK National Debt Clock increases by 45.458 pond [sic] per second
Seen by me: 27/4/17
Verdict: Doesn’t make mathematical, spelling or punctuational sense.
Analysis: The link claims £5,170 per second. According to http://www.ukpublicspending.co.uk/spending_chart_2010_2020UKb_17c1li011tcn_G0t, I estimate it’s about £100 bn/year or £3,200 per second.
Claim: Drinking diet soda (artificially-sweetened fizzy drinks) increases the risk of strokes
Seen by me: 27/4/17
Verdict: an association between the two things is true (and statistically significant) (according to a cohort study by Boston University School of Medicine, published in 2017); but this does not show that one causes the other as the claim states.
Analysis: I tracked down the actual report in the AHA journal “Stroke”:
http://stroke.ahajournals.org/content/early/2017/04/20/STROKEAHA.116.016027.full.pdf.
2888 participants aged >45 years. Hazard ratios (normalized to those drinking no diet soda) were 2.96 (95% confidence interval, 1.26–6.97) for ischaemic stroke and 2.89 (95% confidence interval, 1.18–7.07) for Alzheimer’s disease. Note, however, that accepted medical wisdom based on studies from the 1990s onwards has found no increase. Not also that this study is very recent and time will tell whether its conclusions stand up to scrutiny. Note also that this is a “cohort study” and not an (evidentially-superior) randomized controlled trial.
Claim: photo shows Jimmy Savile campaigning for Conservatives in 2010 in front of VW van.
Seen by me: 27/4/17
Verdict: false
Analysis: this is a hoax. The original photo has no writing on the van and it's an advert for the VW van. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/12177987/Jimmy-Savile-Vote-Conservative-hoax-spreads-on-social-media.html
It’s a deliberate attempt to smear Conservatives with doctored photo.
Claim: world population increasing by over a million per week.
Seen by me: 26/4/17
Verdict: true.
Analysis: accurate statement of fact. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Population_growth says: Global human population growth amounts to around 75 million annually, or 1.1% per year. 75 divided by 52 weeks in a year yields well over one million per week.
Claim: carcinogen arsenic in rice and rice products is a cause for concern
Seen by me: 26/4/17
Verdict: unsure.
Analysis: it's a small Swedish study.
Haven't read the original report but I haven't noticed any wide-scale government advice to avoid rice.
Claim: Laura Kuenssberg (BBC correspondent) invented fake news about Jeremy Corbyn
Seen by me: 25/4/17
Verdict: exaggeration
Analysis: See the full text of the BBC Trust report at http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/assets/files/pdf/appeals/esc_bulletins/2017/jan.pdf.
If one accepts the Trust’s report findings, then BBC News was reprimanded by the BBC Trust for inaccuracy but not dishonesty.
"Although Trustees considered it [the BBC] was not duly accurate ..."
"The Committee found no evidence that there was a deliberate attempt to mislead audiences ... ."
"Trustees had no reason to doubt that the report for the News at Six had been compiled in good faith."
"But Trustees agreed that there was no evidence of bias or any intent by the BBC or any individual to misrepresent Mr Corbyn’s position."
If one does NOT accept the Trust’s report findings, then it is, of course, possible that this was an attempt to misrepresent the Labour leader.
Claim: picture says 7 species of bee have been put on endangered list. Implies we're facing possible bee extinction.
Seen by me: many times pre-25/4/17
Verdict: partly true, but deliberately misleading
Analysis: All seven species are closely related and all are native to Hawaii. No other bee species are endangered, as far as I can tell.
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