Beware of poisoned sources, you may end up falling into a trap

For some time now, a curious phenomenon has been observed on social networks, and we should be very careful about it.

Some tips to identify fake news and prevent a media outlet from manipulating you
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An example of this could be seen in recent hours with the stabbing murder of an 11-year-old boy in Mocejón, about which there has been a curious silence on the part of the government until this Monday afternoon it was known the arrest of a 20-year-old Spanish man with mental problems as the perpetrator of the crime. As I pointed out yesterday on Twitter, I don't care about the nationality, race or hair colour of the criminal. I hope they put him in a cell and throw the key into the sea, because the atrocity he committed against that child deserves the harshest punishment.

As you may have seen, I have not published any speculation on Counting Stars about the possible nationality of the criminal. As I said here, I do not like to talk about current events on the blog, because doing so involves a considerable risk, which is to rely on the incomplete versions published by many media outlets.

On the other hand, I have always been very clear that a crime is something horrendous and condemnable no matter who the perpetrator is. For years I have been denouncing that the left treats some victims as if they did not matter because of their sex or the sex of the person who commits a crime, and as you can understand I am not in favour of giving more importance to a crime because of the origin or race of the person who commits it.

This does not mean, of course, failing to point out the higher incidence of certain crimes among people of certain nationalities, but without forgetting what I said here in the article I just linked: statistics are an indicator of social reality, not an individual portrait. The fact that there are more cases of criminals from a certain country does not indicate that all the people in that country are criminals.

Every time a crime occurs, it's common to see certain Twitter accounts that spread unverified information, without citing the source from which that information comes. I always take with great caution what these types of accounts publish. Last Sunday, an expert on immigration issues, Rubén Pulido, warned about these poisoned sources in a Twitter message that I recommend you read.

Rubén commented on the deceptive practices that the far left is carrying out in the United Kingdom, creating accounts that spread false information aimed at people against illegal immigration: "They launch distorted information and bait in search of the impulsive reaction of citizens opposed to this wave of uncontrolled immigration and its effects. When they have found someone of special relevance who has taken the bait, they activate the entire machinery of public and judicial reporting to eliminate any dissent."

In that message, Rubén added the following: "Let us continue to denounce what is happening in our streets, but let us keep in mind that false and apparently informed reactions may emerge that seek error for later criticism, and with it, the annulment of any capacity for action in the face of all the consequences derived from what is happening in our maritime, land and air borders."

Whether or not there are cases of fake left-wing activist accounts spreading distorted information for right-wing people in Spain (which I do not rule out), what is clear is that there are very sensationalist accounts that do whatever they can to expand their audience, including publishing unverified information, spreading things that end up being false all too often. Sadly, this is a very successful practice, given the hundreds of thousands of followers that some Telegram channels that do these things have.

For years I have been insisting on the need to be alert to hoaxes. In 2019 I published here some tips for identifying fake news in the media, which are also valid for hoaxes circulating on social media. If you defend a cause that you consider just, you may be doing that cause a disservice by spreading these hoaxes, so I ask you once again to be critical of what you read, in order to avoid falling into any traps.

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Photo: Pickpik.com.