He claimed the Guardian was “trying to turn the world into a technocratic tyranny … which will see individual freedom and free speech/wealth creation by ordinary people a thing of the past”.įlyers and fringe conspiracy newspapers are nothing new but the ability to build a real-world, low-cost newspaper distribution network is, perhaps ironically, made easier by tech companies, which are trying to clamp down on disinformation hosted directly on their platforms.Īnd although the reach of a viral YouTube video, Facebook post or a WhatsApp message can often be substantially higher, a newspaper such as the Light can help introduce material to new groups who would otherwise not see it, and seed material that can easily be photographed and uploaded online.*This article may contain product links which pay me a small commission if you make a purchase. Smith also runs an anti-pandemic clothing chain selling T-shirts with slogans such as “scamdemic” and clothing questioning the 9/11 attacks. The adverts are largely for fringe conspiracy sites and associated merchandise. Some of the articles featured in the newspaper have been lifted from other mainstream sites without permission and rewritten with the original journalist’s byline left intact. ![]() Meanwhile, Facebook’s third-party factcheckers were left playing catchup and trying to damp down the fire. The image of it appearing in a printed paper gave the claim credibility. The hoax claim appears to have originated from an obscure blog and was then put by Smith into his self-published print paper, which was then distributed by volunteers recruited through online anti-lockdown Facebook groups and on Twitter.Īfter the volunteer distributors had pushed the newspaper through people’s letterboxes and dropped piles in cafes, readers who encountered the publication began taking photos of its headlines and uploading them to Facebook, allowing the false claims to spread across the internet again. It also shows how the online world is increasingly blended with real-life actions, making it difficult to find a simple technical solution to prevent the spread of baseless claims that could undermine support for a vaccination programme. ![]() The false story that Facebook’s factcheckers traced back to the Light – that the US government had accepted that Covid was a hoax – provides a telling example of the complex web of sources that make up a modern disinformation network. He called the pandemic a “charade” and said “censorship” of these claims by tech platforms had driven him to create the print outlet. ![]() He said YouTube was increasingly removing the conspiracy material he featured in his publication, and since “all the real journalists have left institutions like the Ganduria now” he was filling “a rather large gap in the market”. Smith, who also runs an acoustic guitar strings company in Manchester, said funding for his outlet “comes from donations, advertising and subscriptions”. ![]() The Guardian found readers who picked up copies in the small West Yorkshire town of Holmfirth, coffee shops in London, a hair salon in Farnborough and pubs in rural Leicestershire.Ĭopies have also been left in petrol stations and distributed at anti-lockdown rallies, while people in Manchester, London and north Wales have found it pushed through their door. This morning it is conspiracy theory (there is also advertising for sound baths inside) /zzp4KrIY9q- André Spicer November 26, 2020ĭarren Smith, the Light’s founder and editor, who performs as Darren Nesbitt, told the Guardian his publication has a print run of 100,000 copies, which are distributed by volunteers who sign up to the outlet’s core message that the coronavirus is a hoax.Īlthough this circulation number is impossible to verify, it certainly has a broad geographic distribution. Usual we get advertising for curry shops and real estate agents through the letterbox.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |