• UK
  • World
    • USA
  • Entertainment
    • Celeb
    • Showbiz
    • Magazine
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Gaming
  • Tech
  • Science
    • Education
  • Insurance
  • Business
  • Auto
  • ToS/Contact
    • ToS
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact
NewsExplored
  • UK
  • World
    • USA
  • Entertainment
    • Celeb
    • Showbiz
    • Magazine
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Gaming
  • Tech
  • Science
    • Education
  • Insurance
  • Business
  • Auto
  • ToS/Contact
    • ToS
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact
  • Facebook

  • Twitter

  • LinkedIn

  • Tumblr

  • RSS

Tech

Trump ads push baseless Biden earpiece conspiracy

Trump ads push baseless Biden earpiece conspiracy
Newsexplored
30th September 2020
ShareTweet
SubscribeRedditGoogleWhatsappStumbleuponPinterestDiggLinkedinTumblrTelegram
Views:
2

By Marianna Spring
Specialist disinformation reporter, BBC News

Related Topics

image captionBiden, left, pictured at the debate - and right, in the doctored adverts

US President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign is running hundreds of Facebook advertisements pushing an unfounded conspiracy theory that Joe Biden cheated during the first US presidential debate.

The adverts show the Democratic Party challenger with an earpiece, and say that he refused to have his ears checked for devices prior to the debate.

The Biden campaign rejected the claims.

The Trump campaign adverts ask: “Why won’t Sleepy Joe commit to an ear test?” and “Who is in Joe’s ear?”

Accusations that presidential candidates have received debate help via hidden hearing devices are familiar, albeit unproven. Such allegations have been levelled against both Republican and Democratic candidates in the past.

Prior to Tuesday’s debate, the rumour about Mr Biden’s supposed earpiece was circulating on several social networks, and was being promoted by the Trump campaign.

At least 15 versions

The advertising campaign was launched after the debate, and also promotes two other baseless but widely shared rumours about Mr Biden. One suggested he asked for breaks during the debate, and another accused him of refusing a “drug test”.

data-ad-format="auto">

The photo featured in the advert is not from Tuesday’s debate. It was first shared online in September 2019.

In a number of the adverts, it has been doctored to show Mr Biden wearing wireless Apple headphones. This was not the case in the original image. Some versions circle the ear featuring the headphone.

image captionAnother version of the advert featuring a different caption and edited image

By Wednesday evening, there were at least 15 different versions of the advert, and according to Facebook’s Ad Library, they had reached at least 10 million users.

Facebook has pledged to label posts containing voting misinformation and point users towards accurate information ahead of the election. However its policy does not involve fact-checking political speech, including in advertisements.

The company declined to comment about the latest Trump ad campaign.

Rumour origins

Hours before the debate, the claims went viral on Facebook and YouTube.

Identical memes were pushed by a number of popular Facebook pages with names such as US Conservative and Unhinged Left. They claimed “Joe Biden should be inspected for a hidden earpiece as well as submit to a drug test before the debate”.

These memes are subject to fact-checks - and some have had warning labels applied to them on Facebook.

The claims were picked up by Fox News and other conservative news outlets.

They were further amplified by supporters of QAnon, an unfounded a conspiracy theory that claims President Trump is fighting a secret war against elite Satan-worshipping paedophiles.

Those who believe in QAnon are known for promoting political disinformation on social media which targets opponents of the president. They shared close-up pictures of Mr Biden’s ears, alleging a listening device was visible.

During the debate, some also shared photos of a fold in Mr Biden’s shirt, claiming it was caused by a wire, and of a supposed device on his wrist, where he wears a rosary in memory of his late son Beau.

Nothing new

Conspiracy theories about secret listening devices have been recycled in presidential election campaigns for the past two decades.

Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton faced similar unfounded claims ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

In 2004, rumours circulated among left-wing sites and blogs that President George W Bush was being aided by a secret earpiece.

None of those allegations were found to be true.

Even if a candidate did wear an earpiece, any advantage would be questionable. As TV and radio presenters can attest, listening to someone while simultaneously talking during the back-and-forth of a live event is a difficult skill to master.

Related Topics

More on this story

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Google+ (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)
  • Share on Skype (Opens in new window)

Related

Related Itemsbaselessbidenconspiracyearpiecetrump
Tech
30th September 2020
Newsexplored @newsexploredweb

Related Itemsbaselessbidenconspiracyearpiecetrump

More in Tech

  • Read More
    Five ways the virus has changed Netflix

    Views:2 By Natalie ShermanBusiness reporter, New York image copyrightNetflix image captionComedy series The Good Place has been...

    Newsexplored 30th September 2020
  • Read More
    iPhone 12: Apple makes jump to 5G

    Views:2 By Leo KelionTechnology desk editor Published 7 hours ago image copyrightApple Apple has confirmed its iPhone...

    Newsexplored 30th September 2020
  • Read More
    Ada Lovelace Day: ‘2020 has been a hard slog’

    Views:2 By Zoe KleinmanTechnology reporter From caravans to kitchen tables, and podcast production to pregnancy, I’ve been...

    Newsexplored 30th September 2020
  • Read More
    Microsoft makes remote work option permanent

    Views:2 Image copyright Getty Images Image caption New guidance sent to Microsoft staff indicated that working fro...

    Newsexplored 30th September 2020
  • Read More
    FIFA: What it’s like playing the game as a professional footballer

    Views:2 Image copyright Getty Images “For my FIFA Ultimate Team I just get as many fast and...

    Newsexplored 30th September 2020
  • Read More
    US man avoids jail in Thailand over bad resort review

    Views:2 Image copyright Getty Images Image caption File photo of a tourist resort in Koh Chang, Thailand...

    Newsexplored 30th September 2020
  • Read More
    What is the cost of ‘cancel culture’?

    Views:2 Image copyright Pavel Paulinich What is the cost of ‘cancel culture’? Pavel Paulinich was working as...

    Newsexplored 30th September 2020
  • Read More
    US tech giants accused of ‘monopoly power’

    Views:2 Image copyright Getty Images/EPA/Reuters Image caption Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, Apple’s Tim Cook, Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and...

    Newsexplored 30th September 2020
  • Read More
    Facebook bans QAnon conspiracy theory accounts across all platforms

    Views:2 Image copyright Reuters Image caption QAnon influencers have big audiences on social media Facebook has banned...

    Newsexplored 30th September 2020
  • Read More
    Sali Hughes: I met the woman who trolled me online

    Views:2 Image copyright Sali Hughes A few weeks ago, in a chilly London plaza, I met a...

    Newsexplored 30th September 2020
  • Read More
    The robot shop worker controlled by a faraway human

    Views:2 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media captionThe remote-controlled shop assistant In a quiet aisle...

    Newsexplored 30th September 2020
  • Read More
    ‘App thought I’d catch Covid through neighbour’s ceiling’

    Views:2 Image copyright Getty Images A coronavirus app user says he was told to self isolate when...

    Newsexplored 30th September 2020
Scroll for more
Tap
data-ad-format="auto">
NewsExplored

NewsExplored - Making sure all the latest news is explored?

Contact us for help

  • Popular

  • Latest

  • Comments

  • Ervin Staub: A Holocaust survivor’s mission to train ‘heroic bystanders’
    USA5th October 2020
  • Storm Alex brings heavy rain and high winds to parts of UK
    UK2nd October 2020
  • Hull to Belgium ferry closure ‘end of an era’ for city
    UK1st October 2020
  • Lizzo says body positivity has become too ‘commercialised’ and ‘cool’
    USA25th September 2020
  • Breonna Taylor: Officer in shooting says it ‘was not a race thing’
    USA21st October 2020
  • The Countdown: Tiffany Trump trends and two rivals show love
    USA20th October 2020
  • US election 2020: Trump and Biden feud over debate topics
    USA20th October 2020
  • US election 2020: Fact-checking Trump and Biden town hall events
    USA16th October 2020
  • Les Rehrer says:

    Hello Its me :P and thanks for this post

  • optumrx login says:

    Thank For News.

  • Kent Laatsch says:

    Please let me know if you're looking for a writer…

  • Bob says:

    RT News was where I learned that Erdogan controlled isis.…

Copyright © 2018 Top News Theme. Theme by MVP Themes, powered by Wordpress.

Cyberpunk 2077: Staff to work overtime to finish game
Google Pixel phone ‘designed for economic downturn’
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Ok