STOP POSTING UNVERIFIED TWEETS AS FACT!!!!

[scarletwoman]

DU should be better than the other side. We should not be trafficking in rumor and unverified random tweets. Doing such ought to be beneath us.

Next time you want to happily rec some OP that confirms that which you would dearly prefer to believe, stop and ask yourself - has this been verified? Is there a mainstream reality-based source for this information?

[obnoxiousdrunk]

1. +1. n/t

[DUgosh]

2. And

3 day old news posted countless times already is not “breaking” - do some research please

[scarletwoman]

7. An email to one person won't help when it's more than one person who does it.

[njhoneybadger]

4. The Ginni Thomas story of bank rolling 100 buses Jan 6 was Bullshit, per Snopes.

[IsItJustMe]

10. LOL!!!

It was 70 buses, But hey, I bought into it.

[njhoneybadger]

11. See how stories go, I jacked it up another 30

[IsItJustMe]

24. Well, I knew it was 70 buses, and you and I were gonna agree to disagree.

[jzola]

87. I heard it was 80.

[LizBeth]

25. +1, right. And a flash of irritation it was put out there and thankfully so much other shit,

I never got around to spreading that lie.

All this time and information I have put out since the insurre4ction, I only had one actually wrong and though irritating, I think that is pretty good. It was that impeachment of Trump would lose all kinds of stuff for him. Not true, from what I heard. So leaving that one alone.

[fwvinson]

93. Seemed logical. Even now, it seems logical that she did sent in the busses and they are lying to

you.

[IsItJustMe]

100. Well I believe she has been know to post right wing looney sh!t on right wing sites. So it was not

a great stretch to believe that someone her disposition would be involved in something like that. Didn't have to stretch your imagination too far on that one.

[JoeOtterbein]

5. K n R ! Thanks for posting! nt

[lindysalsagal]

6. THankyou

[lagomorph777]

8. Stop posting Twit posts, period. Twit is a Trump enabler.

Any real story has real sources to link to.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

19. I'm certainly not a fan!

Especially the ones which provide almost no information beyond a tweet link.

I don't even bother with them most of the time, but my curiosity is sometimes piqued when they receive a bunch of replies and recs. Then it's like, "I guess I'll open the mystery link too."

[lagomorph777]

21. I never bother. If it's anything real, it will soon show up in a real post.

I'm just annoyed when I click on an empty DU post, containing only a Twit link. Wasted my time.

[Thekaspervote]

26. Just because your not a twitter fan doesn't mean there isn't valuable info there

It depends on who’s doing the tweeting!

I have posted many valuable ACCURATE tweets from the likes of general Miley, David Wasserman, Nate Silver, Marc Elias and others! Then there are ppl with a tweet following that just always hit the nail on the head, thehorsewhisper, jefftedrick, Rick Wilson, the Lincoln project

I will continue to post from twitter.. if you don’t like it, you don’t have to open it!!

[IsItJustMe]

28. I saw some videos on there of some of the Capitol Police during the insurrection.

Very informative and eye opening.

[lagomorph777]

29. OK - could you please include "TWEET" in the subject line so I can ignore the post?

[Thekaspervote]

33. No.... it's no different than posting an article and not including the source in the title

Feel free to just block me!

I mean really..look at the informative info found here by great OPs that devote a lot of time and effort. I commend them, and if they use tweets..great!

[Shermann]

77. There's some value to early whispers of breaking news

Perhaps that sort of thing should have its own forum category though.

[IcyPeas]

9. right! it is too good to be true.

[msongs]

12. maybe DU could have a forum where all twitter related posts can gather together nt

[Wawannabe]

96. I got a OP hidden on this subject

I laid it out with reasons. Wasn’t snitty or whiney. Someone took offense I guess. I appealed and asked how to bring up the subject of a “social media” forum. No answer and didn’t win appeal either.

[demmiblue]

13. Amen, sister!

[Buckeye_Democrat]

14. Agreed.

I never report them because I'm confident that they're passionately on our side, but we should all be more careful with the facts. And please edit the posts when others definitely point out the errors, at least

[scarletwoman]

18. It seems like a lot of people post OPs and then never go back to read the responses.

So I don't know if they even see when errors have been pointed out.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

23. Yeah, I've thought that too.

It's like, "I've got no time for that! I'm living fast and furious, with many more tweets to find!" Lol.

[NotASurfer]

15. At the very least ask Google if there's independent corroboration

Not another website quoting the single-source tweet, but a separate reporter with another source

[Thekaspervote]

41. Google isn't the know all end all. I've found as many mistakes there as anywhere

The dependable great posters that you see here day after day, devoting so much time and effort to letting us know what’s current, and some choose to object! That’s just ridiculous. The ones I’m speaking of say they were wrong when wrong..that’s all that’s needed

[NotASurfer]

52. It's sorely lacking, but it doesn't even get used as a rudimentary check

People don't need to initiate a full Snopes effort at confirming or refuting something, just to stop and think whether something of purported magnitude is "on the radar" aside from the insular Twitterverse/Facebookverse/etc.

We agree on the central issue, that accepting random internet information without any factual basis is a pure MAGA play that has no rightful place in our playbook

[paleotn]

89. Old journalism trick, rarely seen these days...

corroboration. Works even with a "defective" google.

[consider_this]

16. you gotta admit...

Taser balls was pretty funny. But seriously, what you say is true. I take everything I read here with plenty of skepticism, but it would be nice it it were a bit more pure.

[Rhiannon12866]

17. And "Good DU citizens check for duplicates" - Skinner

[scarletwoman]

20. I wish.

[IsItJustMe]

30. Question: How many pages do you have to check?

If it's not on page one, I feel free to post. Not like this is science or anything. It takes several minutes to read all the posts on page one.

[Rhiannon12866]

32. I do a Search to see if something was already posted.

[IsItJustMe]

36. You can do that? Oh my!!! I am learning new things every day. Guess I will figure that one out.

THX

[Rhiannon12866]

40. You can use Advanced Search which is in the upper right corner

Or if you just want to Search a specific forum, click on Search This Forum at the top of every forum and type in the keywords. That does the same thing. I often use that.

[IsItJustMe]

59. Thanks. I appreciate any help I can get.

Just done it. Seems to work pretty good.

[Rhiannon12866]

60. It takes some practice, but you learn to change the different parameters

I first learned to use it when I was an LBN mod back in 2007 on DU.2. I still use it every day.

[cwydro]

39. No one does that anymore.

A shame.

[Rhiannon12866]

42. I do it all the time.

My first DU gig was as an LBN mod on DU.2 which was good training.

[cwydro]

47. Yes, wrong of me not to appreciate those who do still do that.

I never post OPs, but when I do, I always check first.

It’s really not that hard to do. So thanks!

[Rhiannon12866]

54. I always use it for LBN and V&M and even GD

And the last is where I find the most duplicates. There's no excuse for V&M since it doesn't move that fast, but it still happens every day since people rarely check. And it's invaluable for GD since there are so many duplicates. I use Advanced Search or Search This Forum at the top of every forum, does the same thing. I learned to do that as an LBN mod back in 2007.

[ornotna]

95. That suggestion is going nowhere quickly

Nice try though.

[Wawannabe]

99. So many dups lately especially

I’ve itched to nicely suggest that someone check GD headlines and make sure there aren’t 1 or 5 versions of their topic before posting. But seems small at the moment...but like I said. So many duplicates lately that other important stuff gets buried. IMHO

[Rhiannon12866]

105. Most of the time, all you have to do is check the Latest Page

There are times when every other post is about the same thing. And you're right, an important announcement is apt to get buried quickly.

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

110. Seems like few here even think to check for duplicates anymore

before posting an OP.

[Rhiannon12866]

112. I've noticed, that's why I posted Skinner's reminder.

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

113. I noticed, which is why I replied with what I said.

I guess I broke one of my own rules, though: don't respond to someone in a way that doesn't make it clear you heard what they were saying.

Sorry.

I tend not to post OPs unless I'm on my laptop or desktop, but when I was thinking of doing so recently on my phone (so on the mobile site), I couldn't find the DU search button. I could have done a site search via Google, but I didn't want to bother with it. Since most DUers probably are on the mobile site, maybe that's why they don't check for previous posts on a topic before starting a new discussion.

[Rhiannon12866]

114. Same with me, I don't post threads from my phone, only reply sometimes.

I use Advanced Search - up in the right hand corner - and have figured out how to access it from my phone. At the top of each Forum, there's a link to Search This Forum which takes you to Advanced Search, you only have to change the parameters to choose the Forum and add whatever subject you want.

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

115. Thanks, I'll look for that!

Though, I shouldn't post OPs or replies from my phone at all. I'm proficient on an old school, physical keyboard. I've never adjusted to typing anything longer than a few words on a phone. So, multiple typos are likely, and more likely to escape my notice. Until, of course, after posting. Especially this time of night/morning.

[Rhiannon12866]

116. Oh, I agree, I can't copy and paste - except for the occasional link.

But if you look at the top of any Forum, there's a button that allows you to Search This Forum which you can access on your phone. And you can change that to choose any other Forum or Group and type anything you're looking for in the Subject box! It does take a little practice and I agree about typos, but I've found it very helpful when using my phone - or computer.

[LizBeth]

22. I would appreciate. Hey, are you talking about something specific because I gotta tell you.

Last edited Thu Jan 14, 2021, 05:46 PM - Edit history (1)

So much is happening, so much info. I would prefer to just rely on DU or fellow members letting us know if it is not true. More than anything, I do not want to say any untruths, or lies because it jut hurts my argument and we have truth on our side, which is a win.

[scarletwoman]

46. Yes, there is a specific OP that got to me - but it's not necessary to point it out.

Just use this simple rule of thumb when evaluating the veracity of a post: Is there a link to a mainstream news source? If not, is the source a trustworthy expert/insider/journalist?

Do not unquestioningly accept a tweet from someone you've never heard of as a source of information, unless that person provides a citation as described above.

What happens all too frequently is that something gets posted that we all would very much like to be true, and in the ensuing fit of enthusiasm, no one seems to notice that there's nothing actually backing the claim.

That's the thing to watch out for.

[LizBeth]

57. Ya, right. And sometimes I get suckered in. I do read replies when something too good to believe.

[Thekaspervote]

27. Lots of DUers haves opinions they feel are true. Just post with JMHO. Easy enough.

[IsItJustMe]

31. Good point. But call me internet illiterate, I just now figured out what that stands for. Is that

a real thing?

[Kaleva]

37. I prefer using IMHO instead of JMHO

In (or It's) My Humble Opinion.

[Kaleva]

34. Using "JMHO" or "IMHO", or "IMO" in the title would go a long way.

[Thekaspervote]

44. I do agree with that and have posted to OP and commenters that it would be nice to say

This is my opinion...however you chose abbreviate it IMHO, JMHO, IMO..

[cwydro]

35. Good luck with this.

I watched yesterday as numerous posters posted fake “news” and much of it (of course) came from Twitter.

And some here seem to think it’s ok to do as long as it’s been posted elsewhere first. Smh.

[scarletwoman]

49. It's gotten really bad lately. I think we need a new category of alert for fake news.

[jayfish]

38. In Olden Times.

DUers didn't post anything without citations to back the posting up. It was one of the things that endeared DU to me. ...No BS.n

[scarletwoman]

51. Yes, I miss those days. The proliferation of social media has really destroyed that ethic.

[davekriss]

65. Yes, that's right

I recall those days (I’ve been here since 2002).

Note, however, that often the cite *is* a Twitter post, a Facebook page, or similar. We didn’t have those ‘soft journalistic’ media to contend with back then. They present a challenge. And that’s precisely what bad actors on the right know and exploit.

Back in the day, I was (and still am) suspicious of mainstream media. Reasons: for starters, see Chomsky’s and Herbert’s Manufacturing Consent and/or Chomsky’s Necessary Illusions.

It really is difficult out there, with planted brain worms and memes, and a mainstream media that tends to support the established order of things (i.e., trends conservative). What’s that line from a Lou Reed song? ‘Don’t believe half of what you read, none of what you hear’ (or something like that). A little Lou skepticism is warranted these days.

[Sogo]

80. Marvin Gaye: Heard it Through the Grapevine....

"People say believe half of what you see, son, and none of what you hear."

[HipChick]

43. The majority of people don't know the difference..

and last time I checked does not appear to be a rule for posting on DU..so would be hard to enforce

[Klaralven]

45. DU should automatically put "T- " at the beginning of the subject line if post has a link to Twitter

So we could ignore them.

[Thekaspervote]

48. Maybe you could post that to admin... ridiculous as it is!!

[Celerity]

101. So a long, detailed, thoroughly documented OP that also has (not exclusively) Tweets would

get a scarlet T and be ignored by some just due to that manifestation?

Hard pass.

[LAS14]

50. Yes, please stop. I was sucked into a post about Ginni Thomas and the busses...

... enought to send it to my husband and brother-in-law. Snopes says it's false. Come on, DU!!!!

[japple]

53. Thank you. Thank you. If you want to just post tweets, go to twitter and re-tweet.

DU used to be a discussion forum. Now it is just a 2nd tier twitter account.

[srose58089]

55. Agreed Opinions are only opinions not facts

I would believe a criminal complaint filed by the FBI even though they are mostly written as opinions. But they are backed up by evidence.

[Politicub]

56. Usually untrue tweets sink after someone links to Snopes or whatever

They may crop up again, but don’t last very long. I don’t let it bother me, and usually learn something by reading the discussion that occurs after something is disproven.

My biggest DU smack down happened when I posted a link to a tweet calling for help to track down people to cure some Georgia absentee ballots. I was told swiftly and repeatedly that the tweet wasn’t true, I should do a better job at fact checking, I am a lazy poster, etc. The pile-on became quite ridiculous, and I deleted the post. Fact checking happened in real time.

Then after deleting the post, someone sent me a private message asking why on earth I would post something like that without checking? Did I need help next time? I didn’t know someone was watching so closely, and didn’t recognize the poster name. Who does that?

[stopdiggin]

67. not to pile on further

but I think that serves as "poster child" for what the issue is. You posted something (w/ link) to twitter that was obviously and egregiously untrue .. then respond to the righteous slap down with hurt and confusion. The point of the OP is -- DON'T post something if you don't have the first inkling about the source, or its veracity. In other words, don't throw a bunch of garbage out there -- just figuring that DU is going to be your fact checker -- and weed out the dross. We'd rather keep the 'garbage' to a minimum as a baseline. And, respectfully, that's where you (and the OP) come in.
----- -----

[scarletwoman]

74. Thank you. Well said.

[irisblue]

78. People who want control over others peoples posts?

[demmiblue]

81. That isn't what I have seen a lot of the time.

What I have seen is people pointing out the falsehood early in the post. Few people acknowledge the response and continue to rec the post. Many times, said post lands up on the front page. And it isn't just tweets.

[scarletwoman]

84. Thank you. Yes, I've seen it happening too many times to count.

It's very frustrating. I love DU, I don't want it to become a source of disinformation and falsehoods.

[LiberalLovinLug]

58. I wouldn't doubt if this was another of Putin's tricks he's taught the Trumpsters

After of course flooding social media with false disinformation memes with lies about Democrats, they will also try and flood sm with purposely false disinformation about the Trumpsters, counting on liberals to spread it for them. And yeah, its damned tempting to just post it without checking first.

So that if Trumpsters are charged with spreading disinformation, they can point to these kinds of things and say "see?...both sides..."

Or worse, now they are way more proactive. They've learned to actually accuse Democrats of the crimes they are committing, even before they are accused of it themselves. They will dedicate one week, coordinating with Fox News and Limpballs, etc to raise this issue. Democratic disinformation and fake news. Base it on these planted fake memes.

And as it works other times. If then Democrats charge THEM with doing it, it looks like THEY are the ones just making something up to counter the charges "I know you are but what am I".

[Cobalt Violet]

61. Thank you.

[BobTheSubgenius]

62. In fact, DU is noted for its more or less scrupulous honesty and accuracy.

That is something no one should want to take a chance on, let alone besmirching it.

[SharonClark]

102. Noted by who?

[scarletwoman]

108. By whom. It was always a point of pride for us old-timers posting here.

As a group we were all scrupulous about only posting news from verifiable sources. It was an integral part of DU culture since its inception.

[GusBob]

63. Before Twitter if you posted something inaccurate it was called out pronto

In fact folks got upset if one asked: got a link for that?

Now because it's a tweet It's accepted as truth

It's not annoying It's fucking embarrassing

Like a stupid drunk uncle at Thanksgiving spouting ignorance. Only here folks are like nodding their heads slackjawed

[BobTheSubgenius]

64. And one more thing....

...is an unambiguous disclaimer enough, sometimes? I'm sure most everyone here is more than capable of making up their own minds.

But, if it's a breach of etiquette, or just not done, I will cheerfully abide by that. I've seen many a post slagged for inaccuracy or a lack of timeliness, but no definitive words on disclaimers.

You'd think that, after about 5800 posts, I'd have run across that little particular before.

[pwb]

66. I don't use twitter.

But some of the tweets turn out.

[StarfishSaver]

68. Thank you

Just because someone tweets it doesn't make it true.

The same goes for memes.

[scarletwoman]

72. Thank you! And yeah, don't get me started on memes!

I swear, some days it seems like there's a conspiracy on DU to drive me nuts...

[royable]

92. I can imagine a meme about that.

A photo of some goofy-looking person staring at a computer screen with the all-caps sans-serrif font screaming, "IT'S IN A MEME!" "IT MUST BE TRUE!"

[dsharp88]

69. Absolutely!

We need to make sure what we post as factual is attributable to a trusted source.

[Saboburns]

70. I do what I want

nt

[scarletwoman]

73. So, truth and accuracy mean nothing to you?

[demmiblue]

76. That person's fee fees are hurt because he recently had a...

misogynistic post removed from the Lounge.

[scarletwoman]

85. *sigh*

[bdamomma]

71. Fact base

information please. Especially here on DU.

WE need the site listed too.

[demmiblue]

75. And if you post a tweet with a link...

have the courtesy to post a few paragraphs from the link.

[KPN]

79. Yeah, we gotta be above that.

[qazplm135]

82. look I stand by my claim that Ted Cruz is a lizard person

I mean he's clearly not human.

[scarletwoman]

86. Well, I can't argue with that.

[BREMPRO]

91. not human, but he looks more like a homeless werewolf lately

scruffy, small footed, and small minded with airs of grandiosity.

not discounting the lizard theory though. He's more likely liz than man.

[Swamp Country Po Boy]

83. Amen

I remember Bill Maher saying most Americans get their news from Facebook!

[scarletwoman]

88. We certainly ought to do better than that!

[BREMPRO]

90. wait what!? so tweets are not verified facts?

i thought they were!, especially if they come from someone of stature, like a President....



so agree with this sentiment of rigorous fact checking on DU, we can't become like the Q-anonunsentient beings if we want civilization to continue....

[Iggo]

94. Kids these days.

Everything’s true unless proven false.

[whistler162]

97. Shhhh.... keep this on the downlow

I saw an unverified tweet that people where posting unverified tweets but you should wait for that to be verified.

[DeminPennswoods]

98. Thank you

nt

[lamp_shade]

103. It's gotten so that I ignore that stuff. The facts eventually come out and prove

those posts wrong. Grrr.

[progree]

104. It might be best to think of a tweet as akin to chain email --

In a small number of cases it might be good info -- who is the author, and can that be verified? Any links in the tweet to articles or information from reputable sources? Does the reputable source article really back up what the tweet is saying? And so on.

[Beringia]

106. Why not just alert on it as fake news

[scarletwoman]

107. Because no such category exists in the current alert menu.

The current alert system doesn't allow you to write in a reason for the alert, you can only choose from a pre-set menu of reasons. And none of those address "fake news."

I have sent in a request to the Admins for them to create such an alert category. Have not heard back as yet.

[Beringia]

109. Thanks for the explanation

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

111. It's embarrassing to see DUers just as willing as

RWers to believe fake news, as long as it's something negative about Rs or positive about Ds. Or sensationalist in some way.

Also, posting incorrect info on laws or policies, etc.

After this past four years of horror, though, it's almost understandable.

[scarletwoman]

117. It's not a good thing to see that kind of willingness to believe fake news on DU.

Yes, it's embarrassing - it's also frustrating, infuriating, and saddening.

After this past four years of horror, though, it's almost understandable.

Maybe - but it seems to me, the past four years ought to motivate us to as scrupulous as possible about making sure that the information we post is true and verifiable.

[Progressive dog]

118. I try to search mainstream media

before believing, reccing, or replying to anything without links other than twitter. I still sometimes get suckered.