Fake News

Fake news is becoming a part of our daily lives. Not only does media surround us but it also consumes us as we are pulled in by news stories on social media, newspapers, magazines and other forms of media outlets. So, what is this fake news that I speak of? Well, if you haven’t already heard the concept of fake news has been spreading across the globe, in a bid to amplify their effect and perhaps a use of propaganda towards views and attitudes. Fake news consists of hoax stories created by various online sources, a lot of the time with topics surrounding religion and politics. It has shown however that the epidemic that has been formed by fake news is having a detrimental effect on the real world. The reason that fake news is so prominent now is due to power behind social media. Whether you’re sharing on Twitter, YouTube or Facebook, the news is not only placed there to share with others or persuade, but to create an identity of a person, give people a community to fall into.

Now, let’s introduce you to some YouTubers that provide us with some coverage on the conflicted views of mainstream media (otherwise known as MSM). Below is a link to their channels!

Paul Joseph Watson – https://www.youtube.com/user/PrisonPlanetLive

Mark Dice – https://www.youtube.com/user/MarkDice

The Alex Jones Channel – https://www.youtube.com/user/TheAlexJonesChannel

Millennial Millie – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCglVbeKF9JGMCt-RTUAW_TQ

If you’re looking for some informative news about news sources and manipulation of the media, then be sure to head over to their channels.

To continue, we have seen some crazy and bizarre fake news stories recently, but the question is where does YouTube come into all of this chaos? YouTube is a outlet for many news broadcast networks to post videos clips from recordings of their shows. Some of the main news sources that have been under fire over the last few months have been CNN, Fox News and NBC. In particular throughout the coverage of the US election, the rivalry between Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump was no word of a doubt stirred by the media. Many American broadcasters kept their left or right wing views as a central opinion, and this reflected in the news they were putting out to the public. Looking back on it now, many journalists are saying that fake news was a core problem during the presidential election. For example, CNN were consistent is their take on the election that Donald Trump would lose, trying to warn the public that the stock market will drop if Trump wins the race, trying to sway the votes of many. MSM have this authority over changing opinions, and they are using this power to their advantage.

Not just the broadcasters but their reporters themselves have been under scrutiny for encouraging the use of fake news in their own segments. Fox News star Megyn Kelly who hosts “The Kelly Files” has been criticised by many for her outspoken views. Kelly has previously made comments on news stories, focused solely on the race of those involved and no other factors. Her manipulation of news stories has come to the attention of viewers recently with the “Pizzagate” story. Going back “Pizzagate” is a conspiracy theory that Hilary Clinton is linked to a human trafficking ring connected to a string of restaurants, due to some coding in the leaked emails. This then led a Edgar Welch opening fire in Washington Pizzeria “Comet Ping Pong” During this passer by Jack Posobiec went inside and did a short Periscope on what the pizzeria looked like inside, before being escorted out. Although during reports of the “Pizzagate”, Megyn Kelly (Fox News) portrayed Posobiec as the perpetrator, when he was in fact not. This has indeed prompted her leave to NBC as many were not in favour of her segment anymore on daytime news. Watch the video below posted on Fox News’ YouTube channel for an interview with the pizzeria owner on “The Kelly Files” on how damaging the fake news stories have become.

YouTube has also been a source for it’s own fake news stories. The benefit and downfall of the site is that anyone can uploaded, whatever they like, whenever. Therefore some stories do get misconstrued along the way attempt to mislead people. People use actors in YouTube videos conveying that an event happened, when it in fact never happened. The below video shows a LiveLeak uploaded to YouTube which was done staging a Baghdad bombing carried out by ISIS. This was soon to be proven as a hoax and was performed by actors. It is unclear what the motive behind creating this video was, perhaps it’s an attempt to fight against the extremist group.

That was my little run down on fake news,

Till next time 🙂