The Conservative party have been caught trying to trick voters that their own partisan social media accounts are impartial fact checkers as the Labour and Conservative leaders face off in the first television debate before the upcoming election.
On Twitter, the official and verified Conservative Party press account has changed its profile name to “FactcheckUK” and changed its logo and header picture to nonpartisan-looking ticks in purple, avoiding the recognisable Conservative blue colour.
The Conservatives claim to be fact-checking Jeremy Corbyn during the debate, but coming from a purely partisan position they are in no position to fact check any part of the debate. Among the so-called “facts” represented on the account are proclamations that Boris Johnson has negotiated a “great new deal” and has “kept his promises on Brexit” despite putting a customs border down the Irish Sea and failing to meet his own Brexit deadline. The account also asserts that Corbyn’s claim that there would be no deal between Labour and the SNP is a “lie”.
The account is also retweeting a variety of Conservative MPs’ comments during the debate without any admission that the account is Conservative Party propaganda.
For those looking for impartial fact checking, a number of independent organisations are fact checking all parties during the general election campaign. These include FullFact, BBC Reality Check, and Channel 4 News Fact Check, which currently operates the real @factcheck Twitter handle that the Conservatives are attempting to impersonate.
A few political parties and others have tried to mimic real, impartial fact-checking sites over the years. We're really not fans… #realfactchecking please https://t.co/T8YCCBgCy5
— C4 News FactCheck (@FactCheck) November 19, 2019
It is inappropriate and misleading for the Conservative press office to rename their twitter account ‘factcheckUK’ during this debate. Please do not mistake it for an independent fact checking service such as @FullFact, @FactCheck or @FactCheckNI
— Full Fact (@FullFact) November 19, 2019
Don't forget to follow @factcheck and other *real* fact-checking sites for impartial analysis of the election campaign. Let us know what you want us to check after tonight's #LeadersDebate
— C4 News FactCheck (@FactCheck) November 19, 2019
