The Final Word
FAKE NEWS and Dead Cats
by Chris Brown , Communications Consultant
here has recently been sharp focus on the phenomenon of ‘ fake news ’. I was
Tblown away last month when channel 4 news carried a report on the number of teenagers who have set up and run fake news websites from their bedrooms in Macedonia , making hundreds of thousands of pounds per year in advertising revenue .
These websites churn out fake and untrue stories passed up as real news to the likes of American and Western European audiences who really struggle to decipher between fact and fiction .
As a PR professional , I have been aware for years that there has been a perceived trend for the media consuming public to distrust sources of news , such as newspapers and broadcasters , and instead to turn to the internet and social media , despite the fact that the source of the stories is often unclear and it is not known whether the reports are factually accurate .
This has got to an alarming level . So much so , that the House of Commons has felt it necessary to investigate this trend .
The Culture , Media and Sport committee recently sent out a call for submissions as part of its inquiry . The Committee is looking at ways to respond to the phenomenon asking questions such as :
• What is ' fake news '?
• What impact has fake news on public understanding of the world ?
• What responsibilities do search engines and social media platforms have , particularly those which are accessible to young people ?
• How can we educate people in how to assess and use different sources of news ?
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• Are there differences between the UK and other countries in the degree to which people accept ' fake news ', given our tradition of public service broadcasting and newspaper readership ? Launching the inquiry , Damian Collins MP , Chair of the Committee , outlined " the growing phenomenon of fake news is a threat to democracy and undermines confidence in the media in general .
“ Just as major tech companies have accepted they have a social responsibility to combat piracy online and the illegal sharing of content , they also need to help address the spreading of fake news on social media platforms .”
The Committee through its inquiry will be scoping out if it is possible if consumers should also be given new tools to help them assess the origin and likely veracity of news stories they read online as well as looking into the sources of fake news , what motivates people to spread it , and how it has been used around elections and other important political debates ."
Dead Cats
It would be a stretch to say that we have suffered from an onslaught of locally produced fake news .
However , the sheer amount of scandals , issues and political party missives means that we simply don ’ t know who to believe anymore . Claim and counterclaim has created a very confused and crowded media space , particularly in the run into an election .
One thing that our wide range of political parties are remarkably good at is rolling out the ‘ Dead Cat ’ tactic .
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Basically , it is the art of being grilled on an issue , and then out of nowhere bringing up another issue to dominate the conversation and turn media attention to it .
One former UK government communicator has likened this to people sitting having dinner around a table , when out of nowhere a dead cat is thrown on to the table . Suddenly everyone is talking about the fact that there is a dead cat on the table .
Having five main political parties with lots of spokespeople makes this a regular occurrence in Northern Ireland . It may be a diversionary tactic , but one thing we must get sharper about is how we can check the facts and validity of what some of our politicians are saying . It hasn ’ t been easy to keep track of . Our media have done a great job in the last six months in scrutinising what has come out of government . The media plays a vital role in our society . We are now exposed to more fake news and dead cats than we can shake a stick at . We need good journalism to tell us the truth .