BMJ gets fact checked

1984, APPENDIX. The Principles of Newspeak

It was expected that Newspeak would have finally supersed Oldspeak

(or Standard English, as we should call it)

by about the year 2050.

The purpose of Newspeak was not only to provide a medium of expression for the world-view and mental habits, proper to the devotees of Ingsoc

but to make all other modes of thought impossible.

BMJ, past record

History of a news blog

Facebook versus the BMJ: when fact checking goes wrong

Facebook and the gatekeepers of international fact checking

Relating to Covid-19: Researcher blows the whistle on data integrity issues in Pfizer’s vaccine trial

Second highest “Altmetric” score of all time across all biomedical publications

Howard Kaplan, retired dentist posted a link, private Facebook group

The investigation reported poor clinical trial research practices occurring at Ventavia, a contract research company helping to carry out the main Pfizer covid-19 vaccine trial

“The Facebook Thought Police has issued me a dire warning,”

“Facebook’s ‘independent fact-checker’ doesn’t like the wording of the article by the BMJ.

And if I don’t delete my post, they are threatening to make my posts less visible.

Obviously, I will not delete my post . . . If it seems like I’ve disappeared for a while, you’ll know why.”

Over the past two months the journal’s editorial staff have been navigating the opaque appeals process without success, and still today their investigation remains obscured on Facebook.

The experience has highlighted serious concerns about the “fact checking”

third party providers on behalf of Facebook,

the resulting censorship of information.
Other FB users

unable to share

“Missing context . . . Independent fact-checkers say this information could mislead people.”

Readers were directed to a “fact check” performed by Lead Stories

“debunking fake news as it happens.”

A Pfizer spokesperson said that the company’s investigation “did not identify any issues or concerns that would invalidate the data or jeopardize the integrity of the study.”

No errors found

the Lead Stories article not identifying anything false or inaccurate.

Lead Stories did not mention that the investigation was externally peer reviewed,

At the time of going to press Ventavia had not responded to The BMJ’s repeated requests for information.

Pfizer told The BMJ, actions were taken to correct and remediate where necessary.”

FDA stated that it was unable to answer The BMJ’s questions, “as it is an ongoing matter.”

Wider problem

Instagram, like Facebook, is owned by the parent company Meta.

A Cochrane spokesperson said that in October its Instagram account was “shadowbanned” for two weeks

“when other users tried to tag Cochrane, a message popped up saying @cochraneorg had posted material that goes against ‘false content’ guidelines”

Jillian York, director for international freedom of expression, Electronic Frontier Foundation

I worry about the amount of power placed in the hands of these third party groups,

There’s no accountability structure.

There’s no democratic process to this.

Facebook and some traditional media are reasonably concerned about vaccine misinformation

but have swung so far in the opposite direction as to potentially shut down legitimate questions about major corporations like Pfizer

(Paul Thacker, the author of The BMJ’s investigation)

Kamran Abbasi, The BMJ’s editor in chief

“We should all be very worried that Facebook, a multibillion dollar company, is effectively censoring fully fact checked journalism that is raising legitimate concerns about the conduct of clinical trials.

why is Facebook acting in this way?

What is driving its world view?

Is it ideology?

Is it commercial interests?

Is it incompetence?

Users should be worried that, despite presenting itself as a neutral social media platform, Facebook is trying to control how people think under the guise of ‘fact checking.’”

[chaseme]

There needs to be a class-action lawsuit against FB for posting these "checks" as "facts" when they are mere opinions.

[martideputy]

'1984' was REQUIRED reading when I was in mid/high school. Youth today have no idea what is happening to our society.😥

[aniE]

That "fact check" is absolutely ridiculous. Just like the rest of their "fact checks".

[sablechicken]

Most of us already knew that censorship is a huge issue even before this last two years of shut down.
But thank you Dr. Campbell for bring this to our attention.

[selinawood]

It's troubling me that so many intelligent people took so long to see the truth, I pray it's not to late.

[jf]

I admire your dry, satirical, methodology in analysing these issues Dr John. Many thanks.

[Patrick-rjgh]

The turning point for me seeing Luc Montagnier, a Nobel Laureate in virology being "fact checked" on a matter of virology by someone whose highest qualification was a bachelor of fine arts. No Joke, that actually happened!

[LeilaniG]

Never let other people live rent-free in your head. Haters and disinformers grab on to anything they think looks remotely useful for their personal agenda. Keep on keeping on Doc. You're doing FINE

[stultuses]

Dr John, your British sarcasm humor is brilliant, simply brilliant

Timely pauses in your delivery to highlight a point, story construction and retorical quarrying is just supreme!

There is no comeback from a sharp poke with a fact check of the fact check!

[joshuajeppesen]

"Thought police" I believe is referring to the understanding that these fact checkers are not necessarily checking facts but checking narratives that do not agree with their perceptions of the topic. I would also point out that the act of banning or silencing someone for a different viewpoint is a form of censorship (especially in this case). Thank you for your continual dedication with giving a fair, professional, and ethical perception of so much information that is easily misconstrued and manipulated. Be well Dr. Campbell.

[les]

FB fact checking the BMJ is almost as laughable as a computer software salesman giving us lectures on health and funding vaccines.

[CallMeSnake]

I'm grateful for level headed people like yourself in such confusing times. Thank you Dr. John Campbell.

[Arthur]

Never mind fact checking thank you Dr John for all the "sanity checking" that you do. You have kept a lot of us sane with your impeccable analysis and balanced views over the last two years.

[funkyplaya]

Keep fighting the good fight, Doc. Many of us are aware something isn't right. Scary times we're going through.

[martinkelsen]

Literally the best put down of the fact checkers/censors of FB, in which Dr. John raises the art of sarcasm to stratospheric levels!

[kooltom]

Just finished re-reading 1984 today coincidentally, The concepts of "un-personed; thoughtcrime ; thoughtpolice; goodthink" seem so much more chilling today than they did when I first read this. Huxley's position that by changing language the capacity to critique/analyse is also manipulated.

[arymhansie]

The BMJ is one of the most prestigious journal in the world=well respected!

[markthompson]

Precisely what we need, Doctor: Some good old British understated humour to debunk Facebooks ridiculous 'fact' 'checkers'. Well done.

[Fair-to-Middling]

I love understated humor and Dr. Campbell excels at it!

[marciefinney]

I am so grateful for Dr. Campbell’s validating everything I’ve been feeling regarding all of this gaslighting and new terminology. God bless you, sir.