Wednesday, January 9, 2019

Web Secret 553: Snopes

In this age of fake news, who tells the truth?

Snopes.com.

Snopes promises to be "...the definitive Internet reference source for urban legends, folklore, myths, rumors, and misinformation."

Take this statement: "18 Migrant Children Died in Border Patrol Custody During the Obama Administration."

Snope says the following about it:

"What's True

A 2016 Human Rights Watch report analyzed ICE death reviews of 18 adults who passed away while under detention by U.S. immigration authorities at various facilities between 2012 and 2015.

What's False

We found no documentation supporting the claim that any migrant children, much less 18 of them, died while in the custody of the U.S. Border Patrol during the administration of President Barack Obama.
"

This is followed by an extensive discussion on the origin of the statement and a series of references that support Snopes corrected version.

Not all the statements Snopes dissects are political. Some are nutty social media stories like:

Was a Man Hospitalized After His Apple Airpods Exploded in His Ear? Short answer: No.

Ingesting "a tablespoon" of fruit syrup every 15 minutes for an hour can help someone dealing with vomiting or diarrhea.. Short answer: Unproven.

Snopes is bipartisan:

Did a GoFundMe Campaign to Fund a Border Wall Raise Millions of Dollars Within a Few Days?. Short answer: Yes.

We all need Snopes.

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