fake news

A phrase that refers to a type of "yellow" journalism or propaganda that consists of deliberate disinformation or hoaxes spread via websites, online news, social media, or traditional print and broadcast media. The buzzword became famous after Facebook displayed "fake news" stories in the form of bogus articles and false advertising in advance of the 2016 U.S. Presidential election.

Historical perspective: President Trump’s penchant for making false or misleading statements is accelerating. Trump averaged nearly 5.9 false or misleading claims a day in his first year in office. He hit nearly 16.5 a day in his second year. By only April, 2019, he was averaging nearly 22 false or misleading claims a day according to The Washington Post. For example, the president has repeatedly—like the fictional Don Quixote—mistaken a benign device for turning the wind into energy for something monstrous. At rallies and in speeches, Trump has falsely claimed that wind turbines diminish nearby property values by 75 percent, and nonsensically warned that if they’re used to generate electricity, TVs won’t work during calm weather. “Turn off the television darling, please,” he sarcastically said. “There’s no wind.” Last week, Trump claimed the noise from wind farms “causes cancer.” He also said the turbines slaughter birds—all “while spinning his arm like a turbine and making an unpleasant whirring sound.”