Headline Roundup • November 25th, 2023
NewsGuard Report Says X and Users Profited from Ads Placed Among Misinformation
Summary from the AllSides News Team
On Wednesday, media watchdog NewsGuard published a report that said X, formerly Twitter, and its users profited from posts containing misinformation about the Israel-Hamas conflict.
The Details: NewsGuard focused on 30 posts from 10 accounts it considers “egregious” misinformation spreaders. It found 200 ads from 86 advertisers below 24 of the 30 posts, half of which featured Community Notes. NewsGuard reportedly notified X before it published its report, prompting X to issue a warning statement.
For Context: The report was the second of its kind in a week. Media Matters (Left bias) published a report on November 17 accusing X of placing ads next to antisemitic content, causing many massive advertisers to cut ties with X. CEO Elon Musk and independent journalists said they were unable to recreate Media Matters’ findings and accused it of trying to defame X, leading X to sue Media Matters. NewsGuard, which received $750,000 in funding from the Department of Defense earlier this year, is currently also being sued by Consortium News for defamation. Musk accused Media Matters of intentionally misleading and manipulating the public and advertisers.
How The Media Covered It: The story was not widely covered, but more by sources on the left. Outlets across the spectrum did not include context on the Consortium News suit. The three linked sources framed headlines very differently. The Daily Beast (Left bias) highlighted NewsGuard’s claim that its process is “apolitical.” The Messenger (Center bias) included context on the Media Matters suit. Newsmax (Right bias), did not mention the contents of the report and said NewsGuard harshly ranks news outlets critical of the Biden Administration. Updated 11/27/23 with more detail about Musk's accusations.
Featured Coverage of this Story
Carlos Barria/Reuters
NewsGuard on Wednesday afternoon dropped a report that found that 200 advertisements on the platform formerly known as Twitter from 86 prominent brands, governments, non-profits, and educational institutions showed up on feeds next to viral posts spouting misinformation about the Israel-Hamas war. Analysts studied 30 posts with a combined 92 million views by ten previously identified “repeated spreaders of misinformation about the conflict.” Some of the claims include that the Oct. 7 Hamas attack was a “false flag” and that CNN had manufactured footage of a rocket attack on a...
The Messenger; ALAIN JOCARD/AFP via Getty Images; Getty Images
A new report from media watchdog NewsGuard has found evidence of brand and other organizations' ads appearing next to multiple posts on Elon Musk's X that contain misleading or false information about the Israel-Hamas war.
The research focuses on 30 posts from 10 accounts over the period Nov .13 to Nov. 20, that it identified as being "egregious" spreaders of misinformation to do with the war. According to NewsGuard, X data shows the posts reached 92 million users in total. (NewsGuard told The Messenger it is unclear what revenue X might have...
Elon Musk's social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, issued a new warning Wednesday about the left-wing ratings company NewsGuard.
In a post on the site, X said it was the latest organization to be targeted by NewsGuard, which has systematically targeted conservative media.
"NewsGuard is about to publish a 'report' on misinformation on X. As a for-profit company, they will only share the data that underpins their purported research if you pay," X explained.
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