2018 marked yet another year when confidence and trust in mainstream media took a hit. There were a number of instances where top news organisations ended up disseminating misinformation, wittingly or otherwise. Disturbingly, on numerous occasions,... Read More
Category - Compilation
October was a busy month at Alt News, with a flurry of misinformation and disinformation permeating the social media ecosystem. SABARIMALA BECOMES SOCIAL MEDIA FLASHPOINT The Supreme Court verdict allowing women entry into the Sabarimala temple in... Read More
The month of September saw a flurry of political activity which triggered a wave of misinformation. From Congress president Rahul Gandhi’s Kailash Mansarovar yatra to PM Narendra Modi’s outreach to the Bohra community, each of these... Read More
Rishi Bagree describes himself on Twitter as ‘an ordinary tax paying citizen’. His 99,000 followers on the social media platform include top functionaries of the ruling party and the Central government, led by Prime Minister Narendra... Read More
A resident of Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, “Dr” Gaurav Pradhan describes himself as a data scientist, advisor, digital strategist and professional speaker. He has his own blog where he has delved into myriad subjects – from blockchain... Read More
“Fake Aadhaar available…Ib for deal,” reads one of the posts on a Facebook group “Help for Friends – Advertising Deals” or as its over 7,000 members call it “HFF”. HFF is a secret group and does not... Read More
Those of us even sparsely active on social media must have at some point of scrolling through an ocean of posts come across images of Indian army soldiers, with the caption – “share if you are a true Indian”. The not-so-subtle nudge at our... Read More
The month of August saw the full range of misinformation and disinformation at play- fake quotations ascribed to public figures, photoshopped images targeting political leaders, misinformation with the objective of inciting communal sentiments and... Read More
“Avoid committing the mistake of posting fake content online to avoid losing credibility,” were the words of advice of BJP chief Amit Shah to his party’s “social media warriors” on June 21 at BJP social media meet in... Read More
Social media has become a convenient medium for purveyors of misinformation. Fake news has grown manifold, a large proportion of which is dominated by information which is communal in nature and inciteful in tone, seeking to divide on religious lines.... Read More