Viral Animal Sentience Fake News Story Seen By 2 Million People

by Guest Thu Nov 23, 2017 4:26 pm

This week a number of stories claiming the Tories had voted that animals are not sentient beings went mega-viral. An article on the Independent website – shared thousands of times on social media – reported “The Tories have rejected all scientists and voted that animals don’t feel pain”. The Evening Standard claimed they “just voted that animals cannot feel pain or emotions”. The Indy, which has truly become one of the most downmarket trash clickbait websites around, even named and shamed the Tory MPs “who voted legislation on animals feeling pain and emotion”. These attacks were tweeted out by celebrities like Ben Fogle and Sue Perkins, politicians including Caroline Lucas and failed LibDem MP Sarah Olney, and petitions were signed by hundreds of thousands of unwitting animal lovers. The stats are huge:

Analysis shows 2 million people have seen articles and tweets about the Tories voting against animal sentience
155,157 signed a Change.org petition repeating the claim
263,476 signed another petition on 38 Degrees
43,081 signed a third petition on ThePetitionSite
Nearly 30,000 have signed smaller petitions (that’s almost 500,000 overall)
Sue Perkins shared it with her 1 million followers
Rachel Riley shared it with her 510,000 followers
Ben Fogle shared it with his 336,000 followers
Caroline Lucas shared it with her 276,000 followers
The RSPCA tweeted it out to their 248,000 followers

Just one problem. It is fake news…

During last Wednesday’s debate, Tory MPs repeatedly explained that the government already recognised animal sentience and that the amendment was flawed. Read it here in Hansard – Tory MP after Tory MP stood up and agreed that animals are sentient. No MPs argued against animal sentience. It is just not true to say, as the Indy did, that “The Tories have rejected all scientists and voted that animals don’t feel pain”. Anyone who has seen the Environment Secretary with his Bichon Frise Snowy, or indeed the hedgehog above, knows these viral articles are fake news. This made up story, circulated by the Tories’ opponents for solely cynical reasons, is cutting through to animal lovers who think they can trust things they believe on the Independent website. This morning Michael Gove categorically committed the government to animal sentience once and for all. He couldn’t be clearer:

“This government will ensure that any necessary changes required to UK law are made in a rigorous and comprehensive way to ensure animal sentience is recognised after we leave the EU.”

Will that go as viral as the fake news BS that hoodwinked thousands in the last week?

https://order-order.com/2017/11/23/viral-animal-sentience-fake-news-story-seen-by-2-million-people/

https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2017-11-15/debates/7A700C0E-8BA2-4EEC-B53D-997028C06900/EuropeanUnion(Withdrawal)Bill

by Cass Thu Nov 23, 2017 5:31 pm

Good. I’m glad that it was wrong.

by Guest Thu Nov 23, 2017 5:32 pm

Cass wrote:Good. I’m glad that it was wrong.

So am I, but what damage has been done by such fake news?

I must admit, even I was fooled, but still this is clearly the reailty and dirty games now people are playing.

by Cass Thu Nov 23, 2017 5:39 pm

Didge wrote:
Cass wrote:Good. I’m glad that it was wrong.

So am I, but what damage has been done by such fake news?

I must admit, even I was fooled, but still this is clearly the reailty and dirty games now people are playing.

It’s endemic now Didge.

A big part of my job now is information literacy. I checked out other sources and they seemed to confirm it but a good reminder to myself to keep checking.

by Guest Thu Nov 23, 2017 5:40 pm

Cass wrote:
Didge wrote:

So am I, but what damage has been done by such fake news?

I must admit, even I was fooled, but still this is clearly the reailty and dirty games now people are playing.

It’s endemic now Didge.

A big part of my job now is information literacy. I checked out other sources and they seemed to confirm it but a good reminder to myself to keep checking.

I normally check myself Cass, but I sadly took this as reliable, due to the source.

Which I wont do again in regards to the Independent.

by Tommy Monk Thu Nov 23, 2017 10:59 pm

'...But it remained for the Jews, with their unqualified capacity for falsehood, and their fighting comrades, the Marxists, to impute responsibility for the downfall precisely to the man who alone had shown a superhuman will and energy in his effort to prevent the catastrophe which he had foreseen and to save the nation from that hour of complete overthrow and shame. By placing responsibility for the loss of the world war on the shoulders of Ludendorff they took away the weapon of moral right from the only adversary dangerous enough to be likely to succeed in bringing the betrayers of the Fatherland to Justice.

All this was inspired by the principle—which is quite true within itself—that in the big lie there is always a certain force of credibility; because the broad masses of a nation are always more easily corrupted in the deeper strata of their emotional nature than consciously or voluntarily; and thus in the primitive simplicity of their minds they more readily fall victims to the big lie than the small lie, since they themselves often tell small lies in little matters but would be ashamed to resort to large-scale falsehoods.

It would never come into their heads to fabricate colossal untruths, and they would not believe that others could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously. Even though the facts which prove this to be so may be brought clearly to their minds, they will still doubt and waver and will continue to think that there may be some other explanation. For the grossly impudent lie always leaves traces behind it, even after it has been nailed down, a fact which is known to all expert liars in this world and to all who conspire together in the art of lying...'

by HoratioTarr Thu Nov 23, 2017 11:08 pm

To be honest, it didn't make any logical sense.

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Viral Animal Sentience Fake News Story Seen By 2 Million People

Viral Animal Sentience Fake News Story Seen By 2 Million People

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Re: Viral Animal Sentience Fake News Story Seen By 2 Million People

Re: Viral Animal Sentience Fake News Story Seen By 2 Million People

Re: Viral Animal Sentience Fake News Story Seen By 2 Million People

Re: Viral Animal Sentience Fake News Story Seen By 2 Million People

Re: Viral Animal Sentience Fake News Story Seen By 2 Million People

Re: Viral Animal Sentience Fake News Story Seen By 2 Million People