Twitter fact-checks Trump tweet for first time
[Update: Shortly after this post, Trump lashed out at Twitter, on Twitter.]
This is huge. Twitter today for the first time labeled a tweet by the President as misleading.
On Tuesday, the social media company highlighted two of Trump's tweets that falsely claimed mail-in ballots would lead to widespread voter fraud.
Twitter confirmed that two Trump tweets were flagged for potentially misleading information about voting processes" and are labeled for context.
"Get the facts about mail-in ballots," read a message beneath each Trump tweet.
This message links to a fact-checking page created by Twitter with news articles debunking the assertion.
Trump makes unsubstantiated claim that mail-in ballots will lead to voter fraud," a headline at the top of that Twitter factchecking page reads.
Twitter confirms to me that today is the first time any Trump tweets have been labeled as misleading by the platform.
In these (two) cases, Twitter says, Trump's tweets were flagged for "potentially misleading information about voting processes" and are labeled for context. pic.twitter.com/w0pd4qTjN7
- Brian Fung (@b_fung) May 26, 2020
Of course, this means Twitter will now face further questions about when and how it may apply this label to other Trump tweets, as the president has lobbed baseless allegations against @JoeNBC.
More here: https://t.co/fYiuxuj0ml
- Brian Fung (@b_fung) May 26, 2020
Trump's Frodo-like failson Donald Trump Jr. had something to say about it:
From CNN:
Twitter said the move was aimed at providing "context" around Trump's remarks. But Twitter's unprecedented move is likely to raise further questions about its willingness to consistently apply the label to other Trump tweets that have been deemed misleading by third parties, particularly as the president has lobbed baseless allegations against former Rep. Joe Scarborough regarding the death of a congressional staffer years ago.
Twitter said Tuesday that Trump's tweets about mail-in voting did not violate the company's rules because they don't explicitly discourage people from voting. But, the company said, the label offers context surrounding Trump's claims.
"These Tweets contain potentially misleading information about voting processes and have been labeled to provide additional context around mail-in ballots," Twitter spokesperson Katie Rosborough told CNN Business in an email. "This decision is in line with the approach we shared earlier this month."
More at CNN:
Twitter labeled Trump tweets with a fact check for the first time
[Brian Fung, CNN Business]
Twitter added a fact-check to the president's claims about voter fraud but not a murder conspiracy theory pic.twitter.com/zgZrlc5bSv
- Tonya Riley (@TonyaJoRiley) May 26, 2020
Twitter added a fact-check to Trumps unsubstantiated and unfounded claims about voter fraud.
The link brings users to a "Moments" page with a link to a Politico article and a Twitter written summary of the fact check: https://t.co/I8sVVcI9tJ pic.twitter.com/MsKtE5TjTj
- Nick Corasaniti (@NYTnickc) May 26, 2020
HUGE.
Twitter on Tuesday slapped a fact-check label on President Trump's tweets for the first time, a response to long-standing criticism that the company is too hands-off when it comes to policing misinformation and falsehoods from world leaders.https://t.co/gpvmzlWQli
- Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) May 26, 2020