

Today's Hoax: The Screaming Google Employee  - smacktoward
http://www.onthemedia.org/story/todays-hoax-screaming-google-employee/

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austenallred
It makes me wonder how much "political theatre" slips right under our noses.
The only reason this one was ever called out as fake is that it was _too_
good/bad to be true. What if it were just mediocre?

I run a mildly-popular breaking news Twitter account, and as soon as something
big starts to happen there are a lot of people trying to influence the story
on their behalf. Spammers want to drive traffic, political parties and
partisan hacks start to swing the story their way, governmental PR agencies
start going to work, etc.

It's always interesting to use a Google reverse image search or TinEye on any
stock photography used to stir up emotions in journalism and see if they
actually came from the event the are purported to. Even some of the most well-
established and reputable news sites will pull out old stock footage that
looks good to spice up an event.

For example, there are currently thousands of people protesting a failed trade
agreement with the UN on the main square in Kyiv, Ukraine. Instantly on
Twitter there are "pictures of protestors" that a quick search proves are
actually of Russian gangsters from 2008. Or "pictures of the protestors from
today" that are really protestors from the Orange Revolution on the same
square in 2005. Russia Today was saying a "couple thousand" focused the debate
on the Lenin statue (not the couple _hundred_ thousand protesting what was
essentially a pro-Russian government), etc.

We are deceived (probably myself included) much more frequently than we let on
or are aware. The number of reporters out there aren't enough to uncover and
dispel the lies and rumors that are spreading rapidly with nearly every news
event. There's just too much happening too fast.

~~~
greenyoda
" _It makes me wonder how much 'political theatre' slips right under our
noses. ... Spammers want to drive traffic, political parties and partisan
hacks start to swing the story their way, governmental PR agencies start going
to work, etc._"

In fact, there was an example of political theater in the news just yesterday
which came from the highest levels of our government:

Seymour Hersh Alleges Obama Administration Lied on Syria Gas Attack

[http://news.yahoo.com/seymour-hersh-alleges-obama-
administra...](http://news.yahoo.com/seymour-hersh-alleges-obama-
administration-lied-syria-gas-204437397.html)

The original article it was based on:

[http://www.lrb.co.uk/2013/12/08/seymour-m-hersh/whose-
sarin](http://www.lrb.co.uk/2013/12/08/seymour-m-hersh/whose-sarin)

------
stephen
Wow...that sounds exactly like the same sort of staging as "Pallywood":

[http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=0b4_1375922321](http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=0b4_1375922321)

Sobering to realize it happens here.

...although it's also a reminder that all news/media is distorted to tell its
own story. Albeit some more than others.

------
acchow
Can someone much older than I answer this - were there protests in NYC when
rental prices skyrocketed?

~~~
rm999
NYC has certainly had a lot of issues with gentrification and skyrocketing
rents, but I don't think the issues in NYC are comparable to SF. Huge parts of
Manhattan and Brooklyn have very high rents, but the lower-middle class
haven't been priced out of the general area. I know many people who live in
New Jersey, Long Island, upper Manhattan, and the other boroughs who have very
reasonable housing expenses and commutes.

A random data point: a friend of mine lives in Jersey City and has a huge (for
manhattan standards) one bedroom apartment in a safe area for 1200/month and a
30 minute commute to wall street.

~~~
acchow
> I don't think the issues in NYC are comparable to SF. Huge parts of
> Manhattan and Brooklyn have very high rents, but the lower-middle class
> haven't been priced out of the general area. I know many people who live in
> New Jersey, Long Island, upper Manhattan, and the other boroughs who have
> very reasonable housing expenses and commutes

The equivalent "boroughs" of SF are Berkeley, Oakland, and South San
Francisco. They are still reasonably priced...

