The spread of rightwing blogs,claiming the shooter was an anti-Trump liberal, on to mainstream platforms is the latest example of hyper-partisan trolling after a tragedy
Las Vegas shooting – latest updates[br]How the Las Vegas shooting unfoldedFacebook and Google promoted false news stories claiming that the shooter who killed more than 50 people in Las Vegas was a Democrat who opposed Donald Trump. The misidentification spread rapidly from murky corners of the internet to mainstream platforms just hours after hundreds were injured at a festival near the Mandalay Bay casino, and the latest example of fake news polluting social media amid a breaking news myth. The flow of misinformation on Monday illustrated a particularly grim trend that has increasingly dominated viral online propaganda during US mass shootings – hyper-partisan trolls battling to blame the tragedy on opposing political ideologies. Related: Las Vegas police name suspect in deadly attack Related: 1516 mass shootings in 1735 days: America's gun crisis – in one chart Related: Las Vegas gunman may have used special device to fire faster,expert says Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com