Is the irony of charging people to swim in the River Thames lost on the New Statesman? Isn’t the water in the dock ‘owned’ by the Canal and River Trust anyway?

The people’s game www.theguardian.com/football/202...

fullfact.org/immigration/... If you want the facts not the opinions on the support asylum seekers get in the UK, read this. People are entitled to hold whatever opinions they want, of course, but it’s good to base them on factual information.

www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/n... Here’s some news for you…

Not sure about the title of this episode - I’d have called it ‘The bad guys are winning but it ain’t over yet’. Have a listen anyway

Read this, from our very own @mrdudders.bsky.social Andy Dudfield. fullfact.org/technology/h...

Thanks for the support, Sam. We’re very proud of FullFact.ai

I wrote somethingfor @fullfact.org about the ways in which the disappearing archive makes their work even harder but more important. I'm a trustee & continue to be amazed at their resiliency in an age of AI slop and attacks against those who investigate accuracy. fullfact.org/technology/m...

If you care about verifiable facts and the role they play in creating a healthy society, please support Full Fact’s Radio 4 Appeal. Every little helps - thanks! www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...

Top twenty finish for Saints. Solid.

news.sky.com/story/labour... Great reporting by our team at Full Fact to put big numbers in context and hold government to account

Such an important day for Turkey and the PKK. Will Erdogan finally deliver a peaceful solution? Could Ocalan soon be free? The first day of his trial on Imrali feels like it was just yesterday… newsimg.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/program...

[Community Notes] has a role to play, but is not a substitute for the expertise that professional fact checking brings. And it's great at tagging the obvious, but not the controversial. (@morrischris.bsky.social and BBC's Adam Fleming discuss misinformation at @theconduitlondon.bsky.social)

As a former BBC Turkey correspondent I can safely say this is as unsurprising as it is depressing - in one of the greatest cities in the world. Solidarity with @marklowen I’m old enough to remember when Erdogan himself was in prison for speaking his mind www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/...

A Turkish court today jailed Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, President Tayyip Erdoğan’s top political rival, despite widespread protests against his detention and the allegations against him.

Not being funny but this was immediately obvious to anyone who knows anything about AI and the fact it is surprising to government is concerning www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formul... Definitely my favourite story of the day

Happy New Year one and all from Hong Kong - it’s going to be a big one!

Just over three hours left to help us reach our funding target - by getting your donation doubled. Please support us and our campaign to ensure that as many people as possible have access to good, reliable information @fullfact donate.biggive.org/campaign/a05...

www.politico.eu/article/roma... This is quite a landmark moment, as societies struggle to respond to the information revolution we are living through. But it’s also fraught with danger

We’ve updated our Government Tracker rating on Labour’s pledge to negotiate new immigration returns arrangements. We’ve changed it from “wait and see” to “in progress” after the government announced deals with Iraq which included work on returns.

🎉 The Big Give Christmas Challenge is live! 🕒 For one week only, every donation = DOUBLE the impact. Join the fight against bad information today:

Our Big Give Christmas 🎅campaign is up and running - and if you think there’s going to be quite a lot to do over the coming year, to try to create a healthier information environment, please give generously! Thanks 🙏🏼 Www.FullFact.org/biggive

Good discussion at the #OfCom conference yesterday. There’s lots to do!

Got to imagine this time around is different. Like I wonder what potential role Elon plays as gatekeeper/bouncer? www.theverge.com/2024/11/24/2...

The Meta Ad Library is now lagging behind 12 (!) days. It has never been this bad. Elections are going on in multiple countries including Romania, Sri Lanka, Urugay, and soon Ireland and Iceland. Absolutely unaccepable.

Is it 70,000 farms, or is it 500? This is what proper, rigorous fact-checking looks like 👇

We are tracking the government’s manifesto pledges so people can get clear information and - in Sir Keir Starmer’s words - ‘judge the government’s performance on actions, not words’ fullfact.org/government-t...

A video has been widely shared on social media with the suggestion it shows recent tremors in Iran caused by a nuclear weapon test. But it actually shows an earthquake in the country in 2021.

A TikTok video claims the government has announced “free bus fares for immigrants”, which led to the bus fare cap increasing to £3. But the UK Home Office has confirmed that there is no such policy.

A Facebook post falsely claims Serco has been instructed to “secure all” empty rental properties across the UK to house “illegal immigrants”. Serco only manages asylum accommodation in certain areas of the UK and says it does not use empty homes.

It was bad when I lived there 15 years ago. It’s slightly heartbreaking to know that it’s got worse.

Following the 2024 US presidential election, people began claiming online that 20 millions votes had “gone missing”. But this isn’t correct. Votes are still being counted in many states meaning comparisons with previous elections won’t be accurate.

Football is so much better without VAR. You win some dodgy decisions and you lose some dodgy decisions and you get on with it. VAR is equally if not more dodgy and it sucks the soul out of every game. As a #southamptonfc fan, one shining light about going straight back down would be no VAR. Get rid.

Interesting from Ofcom

Kyle confirms AI legislation next year will make the voluntary safety testing arrangements for frontier models legally binding. AI Safety Institute to be put on statutory footing. Largely a continuation of what the previous govt was planning on.ft.com/3YDSi1L

At the end of a long day, I can say I think we’re going to be busy. #factsmatter

The general election saw a range of concerns about the quality of election discourse. How can they be tackled? @michelap.bsky.social, @morrischris.bsky.social @fullfact.bsky.social and Hannah Phillips will discuss practical solutions. Sign up 👇

We’ve been fact checking claims from today’s #Budget2024, including on: 🪙 Employer National Insurance ❓ The ‘£22bn black hole’ 🚌 Bus fares 📈 Growth forecasts Read our full round-up here 👇

Facebook posts claiming “every illegal immigrant” receives a card preloaded with £175 every week, as well as free daily meals, are incorrect. Destitute asylum seekers staying in accommodation that provides meals are eligible for £8.86 per week on a prepaid Aspen card.

The word audacious is doing a lot of heavy lifting in @matthewholehouse.bsky.social’s article. It was clear during the election that the only choices were raising taxes, cutting spending or borrowing more. No politician was honest about this choice, so it’s a bit late to talk about honesty now.

"Trust is hard earned - and is easily squandered." We’ve reached out to Rachel Reeves ahead of next week’s Budget to stress the importance of honesty, openness, and accountability. With 62% of the public thinking that the government has done little/nothing to improve trust, it’s time for action.

You may have seen claims about a £22 billion, £40 billion, or even a £100 billion “black hole” in the public finances ahead of the upcoming Budget. Our new explainer takes a look at what these figures actually mean.

Hi everyone! 👋 We've landed on Bluesky and we're delighted to be here 😄

Health secretary Wes Streeting claimed 3 times in parliament that Labour governments have delivered the shortest waiting times & highest patient satisfaction in history. As we’ve said before there’s no consistent comparable data to prove either claim.

Full Fact AI’s new tool allows fact checkers and journalists to identify the most important issues in the tsunami of misinformation they are facing, and tackle them more quickly and effectively. It’s already being road-tested by teams around the world. We’re excited by its potential 3/3

Millions of videos containing bad information about health are published online every week. Our tool identifies health misinformation in online videos - on YouTube, Facebook, TikTok and Instagram - and uses Gen AI to summarize claims and rank them according to the harm they could cause. 2/3

Very pleased to be in Mountain View California for the Google.org Impact Summit, where our Full Fact team is launching our new Gen AI Health Misinformation Detection Tool. 1/3