Rumour, Gossip and Fake News Sites

[A440]

This site is yet another conspiracy theory site that promotes gossip, rumour and political disinformation as fact, thus is not a valid source of news information.

thecommonsenseshow.com

. . . the website hosts Dave Hodges’s podcasts as well as publishes news. . . The website also promotes 9-11 conspiracy theories, FEMA camps, false flags, climate change denialism, agenda 21, and much more extreme-right propaganda. In general, this is an extreme conspiracy, pseudoscience and propaganda source that is not credible on any level.

See: https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/the-common-sense-show/

Please feel free to rate this site accordingly: https://www.mywot.com/scorecard/thecommonsenseshow.com

[A440]

This is the site for the NY Post publication, owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, which promotes factional right-wing political disinformation, gossip, and rumours through editorial bias.

nypost.com

the New York Post tends to publish stories utilizing sensationalized headlines with emotionally loaded wording such as “Cop cold-cocks unarmed man ‘acting irate’ at restaurant”, and “It’s time for Bill Clinton to take a walk in the Chappaqua woods.”. . .
A factual search reveals several failed checks.
• Mostly False: Ted Cruz ‘same senator who once supported a ban on sex toys – Mostly False
• Newly Discovered Planet Could Destroy Earth Any Day Now – False
• Hillary Clinton Regularly Had Her Maid Print Classified Documents – Unproven
• PS 169 Pledge of Allegiance and Holiday Ban Controversy – Mostly False
• ‘New York Post’ op-ed rebuts starving children claim that was never made – Pants on Fire

See: https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/new-york-post/

Please feel free to rate this site accordingly: https://www.mywot.com/scorecard/nypost.com

[A440]

protesterprivilege.com

This site promotes conspriacy theories, i.e., ANTIFA protestors setting fires in Oregon
(see: www.protesterprivilege.com/2020/09/10/antifa-arsonist-arrested-near-tacoma-wa-after-live-streaming-himself/).
This man who was arrested is not a BLM protestor, nor self-acclaimed antifa and is a known local man with a previous criminal record:
www.spokesman.com/stories/2020/sep/10/rumors-of-blazes-started-by-antifa-spreading-as-fa/

This site promotes false and misleading information regarding BLM protests – Qanon style.

Please feel free to rate this site accordingly: https://www.mywot.com/scorecard/protesterprivilege.com

[A440]

The Minnesota Sun is a “Delaware-registered company, Star News Digital Media, Inc., whose explicit strategy is to target battleground states with conservative news.” Under this company, is the Ohio Star, Michigan Star, Battlegroundstatenews.com, and Tennessee Star, which are essentially duplicates of the Minnesota Sun with local news.

theminnesotasun.com

The Minnesota Sun is not a local newspaper, but rather a front for “Tea Party-connected conservative activists: Michael Patrick Leahy and Christina Botteri.” Snopes details connections to conservative donors and PACS as well.

See: https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/minnesota-sun/

Please feel free to rate this site accordingly: https://www.mywot.com/scorecard/theminnesotasun.com

[A440]

This is one long time problem site which is for a UK newspaper which deals in factual events as a means of promoting its own world view.
It employs rumour, gossip and conspiracy theories to the point where quite a few articles are not factual but are severe editorial biased opinion pieces or "click-bait". Some articles promote hate, discrimination against different groups of people based upon race or religious belief and social division. This is not an honest or legitimate source of factual news information.

dailymail.co.uk

According to CNBC, the Daily Mail also has been criticized by Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales for publishing fake news articles and “hyped up” headlines and “mastered the art of running stories that aren’t true". In review, the Daily Mail tends to publish stories utilizing sensationalized headlines with emotionally loaded wordings such as “Woman, 63, ‘becomes PREGNANT in the mouth’ with baby squid after eating calamari”, which is a misleading headline. In 2017, Wikipedia banned the Daily Mail as an ‘unreliable’ source. When it comes to sourcing information they use minimal hyperlinked sourcing as well as sourcing to themselves.

See: https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/daily-mail/

They also have a lengthy record of failed fact checks (partial listing here):

Did the Daily Mail Delete a Story Reporting the U.S. Planned to Blame Assad for ‘False Flag’ Chemical Attacks? – Mostly True
“Google search spike suggests many people don’t know why they voted for Brexit.” – Mostly False
Is Using ‘Bug Spray’ to Get High an Alarming New Trend? – Mostly False
Did a White House Intern Make the ‘White Power’ Hand Gesture? – Unproven
Did ‘Melbourne Antifa’ Claim Responsibility for the Vegas Massacre? – False
Are Vigilante Protesters Digging Up Confederate Graves After Charlottesville Clashes? – Mostly False
“Racist picture of Democrat North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper emerges just days after he called on Ralph Northam to resign – DAILY MAIL.” – Pants on Fire

Please feel free to rate this site accordingly: https://www.mywot.com/scorecard/dailymail.co.uk

[Site-rater]

At the risk of offending a Redditor, I'd like to add evidencenotfear.com

Website advocating against COVID-19 restrictions by taking the news out of context. The usual Cloudflare and hidden WHOIS anonymization too.

[A440]

At the risk of offending a Redditor, I'd like to add evidencenotfear.com

Website advocating against COVID-19 restrictions by taking the news out of context. The usual Cloudflare and hidden WHOIS anonymization too.

After reviewing the sourced links in their site, I concur.

evidencenotfear.com uses mostly links that point back to their own site as well as sources which are markedly right-wing/Libertarian in nature: (spiked-online.com/2020/06/26/the-lockdown-is-causing-so-many-deaths/ or this doozy: www.rt.com/op-ed/500000-covid19-math-mistake-panic/). Many of their articles are marked "opinion" as well, meaning the science behind their claims is not solid at all.
This site is almost entirely opinion and political bias masquerading as fact. It's sole goal appears to mimic and buttress Republican talking points in support of Donald Trump and his party.

Some of their contentions have also been discredited with time (www.thetimes.co.uk/article/pupils-pose-no-risk-of-spreading-covid-27q6zfd9l) and some of their alleged experts in matters related to the COVID infection are not:

Dr. Scott Atlas: A senior fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution, a conservative think tank, Atlas is not an infectious disease expert — he’s board-certified in diagnostic radiology, which means he specializes in reading and interpreting imaging like X-rays, CT scans and MRIs

I hesitate not in offending some "Redditor" and invite people to review and rate this site accordingly: https://www.mywot.com/scorecard/evidencenotfear.com

[A440]

This site is is owned by the David Horowitz Freedom Center – a known political operative and is a source of political disinformation, rumour and conspiracy theories, with many failed fact-checks. Ann Coulter and President Trump’s adviser Stephen Miller have both contributed opinion pieces to this site.

frontpagemag.com

FrontPage Magazine promotes extreme right-wing propaganda that utilizes loaded language such as this: LEFTISTS HAVE ALWAYS LIED ABOUT AUSCHWITZ. They also routinely promote President Trump’s immigration agenda such as this: ORWELLIAN SPECTACLE OVERSHADOWS IMMIGRATION DEBATE. The primary purpose of this website is to paint Islam followers negatively such as this: AMERICA’S NEWEST MUSLIM MARTYR IS A CHILD RAPIST AND KILLER. In general, the stories published on this website serve to portray Islam in a negative light. You will never find a positive story, only murder, rape, and terror. This is a classic propaganda and conspiracy website that many take seriously.

A partial list of failed fact checks include:

Is Robert S. Khuzami, the deputy U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, an “Obama holdover”? – FALSE
Social media rumors claimed President Obama dropped leaflets warning ISIS militants of imminent airstrikes against them. – FALSE
In June 2020, Merriam-Webster said it planned to change its entry on “racism” in its dictionary to show only white people are racist. – FALSE

See: https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/frontpage-magazine/

Please feel free to rate this site accordingly: https://www.mywot.com/scorecard/frontpagemag.com

[Site-rater]

hugsovermasks.ca

[A440]

hugsovermasks.ca

This site is a site that promotes not wearing masks under the guise of "civil liberties" and further supports claims that the "pandemic was planned", without any supporting evidence or documentation of such.
This organization is affiliated with one of the country's (Canada) largest anti-vaccine organizations, Vaccine Choice Canada. A look at the anti-vaccine group's social media shows their opposition to a COVID-19 vaccine as well as masks and social distancing. Reportedly, this organization has many posts (social media) in Hugs Over Masks group have compared any inconvenience related to wearing a face covering to the Holocaust. (see: www.freshdaily.ca/news/2020/09/hugs-over-masks-canada/)

Also see: www.rcinet.ca/en/2020/07/27/anti-maskers-teaming-up-with-anti-vaxers-cbc-report/

Yes, this is a site that promotes pseudoscience under the false assumption that wearing a mask so as to avoid spreading disease is a "civil liberties" issue, which it is not. To quote Italian President Mattarella, "One must not confuse liberty with the right to make others ill"

Please feel free to rate this site accordingly: https://www.mywot.com/scorecard/hugsovermasks.ca