tinyclanger2 wrote:ErnstRemarx wrote:tinyclanger2 wrote:http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/ampp3d/why ... go-4745427
piece from the Mirror on CMG
another poll at the end 63% think CMG is spreading awareness; 38% think it's giving the left a bad name. Mirror piece starts with the not at all sanctiommonious:
Of course it does.
It still, IMO, goes no way at all to explaining the obvious media blackout.
another poll at the end 63% think CMG is spreading awareness; 38% think it's giving the left a bad name
And the remaining 204% of us think that perhaps someone should have proof read/sub edited the stats prior to publication...
Poll now at 68 (spreading awareness) 32 (giving left a bad name).
You'd think that an article proudly proclaiming 'Fact Checked' would actually be something in depth rather than cherry picking 12 random tweets to take apart.
In reply to The Mirror.
1. David Cameron acts like he won an election. OUR VERDICT: HE DID WIN THE ELECTION
No, he didn't - he led the party with the most MP's. He is only in power because the Lib Dems betrayed their voters and went into power with them.
2. The public does not want privatised services. OUR VERDICT: THAT'S TRUE
I'll agree with that.
3. People died in WWII to found the NHS. OUR VERDICT: NO THEY DIDN'T
I'll agree with that, although the NHS was founded in a time of great austerity and it does not need to be dismantled because of austerity now.
4. The deficit going up. OUR VERDICT: NO
From the figures they give, I can only agree with this, but Osborne completely failed in his target to reduce it.
5. Child poverty is going up. OUR VERDICT: IT'S COMPLICATED
'Overall the proportion of children living in poverty has slightly decreased if we don't factor in housing costs, and gone up when we do factor in the cost of housing.'
You say this in your article. It's gone up, then. It's true. Don't say it's complicated.
6. Any number of pictures of the empty House of Commons. OUR VERDICT: NO. JUST NO.
I'll go with your verdict but in a rather less condescending way, I would hope that when the Commons is empty that MPs are doing other work for their constituency, working on their brief, etc (and not doing other, paid work).
7. This picture of this house. OUR VERDICT: NO
It's Buckingham Palace. The tweet says 'RT if you think this house should pay Mansion Tax and have their benefits capped.'
I take this to not literally mean the benefits cap, but the total amount paid to the Royals. They are wealthy and we should not be giving them any taxpayers money. I call that as true.
8. Bankers get away with murder*. OUR VERDICT: YOU CAN'T BLAME DAVID CAMERON
Yes, you can, they've done nothing about regulating the banks. They kicked that off into the long grass to start in 2019
9. This front page.OUR VERDICT: OK
It's your own front page and it's only ok?
10. Nobody reported George Osborne looking spaced out in the House of Commons. OUR VERDICT: NOT TRUE
Almost nobody has reported it, just because you've used it a couple of times does not mean it is being reported on as much as bacon sandwiches, and other trivia. My verdict is true.
11. David Cameron can "hear cyber-screams". OUR VERDICT: NO
This is a joke - Cameron hearing 'cyber screams', how can you fact check that?! You're making a nonsense of the term 'fact check'. Stop it.
12. The hash tag is worth millions.OUR VERDICT: NO
I'll go with that, no idea how you can put a price tag on a hashtag.
So, some of the tweets quote inaccurate figures, some show an empty House of Commons - what are the actual proportions? It's no good making them 2 of the 12 tweets you investigate. Fact checking means actually looking at the data and saying whether it's accurate or not. It does not mean cherry picking your data and writing something to fit your own agenda.