General Election 2019
December 10, 2019
Untangling the 'fake news' accusations around the Leeds hospital scandal
On December 8, the Yorkshire Evening Post reported a story about a child with suspected pneumonia forced to sleep on the floor at Leeds General Infirmary due to a lack of beds. The story became a major issue when it was picked up by the national press, and the prime minister was asked about it. Shortly afterwards reports began to circulate that the story and the accompanying photo had been faked, with sources quoting an alleged nurse. These claims have been discredited, but still continue to spread, despite the hospital's acknowledgement and apology for the incident.
Photo via @MirrorPoliticsUntangling the 'fake news' accusations around the Leeds hospital scandal
The story was first reported by The Yorkshire Evening Post
It dominated the headlines later in the day after Boris Johnson was confronted with the image
Boris Johnson apologises after four-year-old boy had to sleep on hospital floor
mirror.co.uk/news/politics/
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The harrowing photo showed a four-year-old who was forced to sleep on the floor while he waited for a hospital bed
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Prime minister Boris Johnson, the health secretary Matt Hancock, and Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust all responded to the story
Tried to show the picture of Jack Williment-Barr. The 4-year-old with suspected pneumonia forced to lie on a pile of coats on the floor of a Leeds hospital.
The PM grabbed my phone and put it in his pocket:
| #GE19
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"What matters is not who looks at what when, it's what are people doing."
Matt Hancock dismissed suggestions that Boris Johnson's unwillingness to look at a photo of an ill four-year-old sleeping on a hospital floor showed a lack of empathy
Read more: itv.com/news/2019-12-0
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We are receiving a significant number of enquiries about the photo of Jack in our Emergency Department. Our statement which was issued at the time can be found here:
leedsth.nhs.uk/about-us/news-
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Stories began to circulate claiming that the incident was fake, with some sharing screengrabs from someone claiming to know a nurse in the hospital
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Replying to @terencehooson
Indeed. This was tweeted to me just now.
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This is really desperate from The Mirror and just does not happen.I work as a volunteer in a busy A & E and babies are immediately triaged and sent to Paediatric for treatment.Why do Labour keep talking down our NHS because it is the envy of the World.
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The Yorkshire Evening Post defended its reporting
I feel the need to clarify a few things about this story after seeing some tweets/accounts doubting the basis of it... 1/
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With all the extraordinary political developments today regarding the Leeds hospital story, worth remembering the case was initially brought to attention thanks to a well-told and researched story from @DSheridanYEP yesterday #localnewsmatters twitter.com/LeedsNews/stat…
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Sarah contacted the Yorkshire Evening Post following her son’s stay at the hospital. Due to the nature of the accusations, I requested and gave time for a full... 2/
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response from Leeds General Infirmary. Within the response, Dr Yvette Oade, Chief Medical Officer at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, confirmed... 3/8
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Jack and his family had been given a full apology. Also within the statement, Dr Oade said... 4/8
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“We are extremely sorry that there were only chairs available in the treatment room, and no bed. This falls below our usual high standards, and for this we would like to sincerely apologise to Jack and his family.” 5/8
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The hospital also confirmed they were experiencing their busiest day since April 2016. Sarah had no issue with the treatment Jack was given by the doctors or nurses. 7/8
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No story would ever be published by without full verification. This was in no way staged, and highlights the need to check all accusations to avoid any miscommunication. 6/8
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She told me the NHS was in crisis and it was my duty to report this fully and accurately. 8/8
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This is the net effect of the proliferation of absurdity by bots, saps & sock puppets. Someone who buys and trusts her newspaper. One that she has taken for years. One she can call or pop in to. One where the editor would be happy to meet her - discredited by a shoddy FB post.
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I have responded in good faith to Margaret. I do hope we are not too late to help people like her, so unfairly manipluated and discombobulated by cynical social media messaging driven by dark forces.
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Another day on the #GeneralElection19 trail. We’ll do today what we always do: talk to real people in real life situations. We won’t rely on mystical ‘good friends of ours’ nor ‘senior nurses who know better than staff & patients in ‘Leeds Hospital’ 200 miles North. We go again.
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To my mind, it isn’t ‘proof’ to unpick a photo of a poorly boy lying prone 200 miles away - and have a random nurse compare it with the textbook for ideal situations - in a bid to discredit his illness as ‘fake’ for political gain. That’s just cruel, lazy and libellous.
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Questions about the veracity of the accusations began to be asked, with many debunking them
So although the hospital has confirmed that the event was genuine, entertaining the rumours is still worth doing?
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Awks for weirdo conspiracy theorists claiming this photo was faked that both the Leeds hospital and (Tory) Health Secretary apologised. Won’t stop the idiots, mind, peddling disgusting smears against the family. PS The boy’s mother was a Tory. She’s now voting Labour
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Replying to
We discussed the story. The hospital confirmed that there was a long wait and no bed. They did not confirm other aspects of the story. Paediatric nurses have questioned the photo as staged as it doesn’t tally with how a suspected pneumonia case would be treated. Worth discussion.
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BREAKING: Sheree Jenner-Hepburn claims she was hacked. Knows not a soul in Leeds, she says. So, that 'good friend' that was used to debunk our story was - according to her - a fabrication.
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Some are using the story as an example of the spread of disinformation and 'fake news' and the problems it can cause in modern politics
How a Telegraph columnist, a Brexit party MEP and the former England cricketer Kevin Pietersen fuelled suspicious-looking fake news campaign about a sick boy at Leeds General Infirmary. Dear oh dear.
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[Thread]1/ This one is about the fake news claiming that a sick boy on the floor of a hospital in leeds was staged by his mother. We know the story is real, Dr Yvette Oade, chief medical officer at Leeds even apologised bbc.com/news/uk-englan
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Disinformation being spread right now on Twitter & Facebook in real time. Excellent analysis by professor with expertise in network analysis. Last few days before election are critical moment for false info spreading. Please help it unspread
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[Thread]1/ This one is about the fake news claiming that a sick boy on the floor of a hospital in leeds was staged by his mother. We know the story is real, Dr Yvette Oade, chief medical officer at Leeds even apologised bbc.com/news/uk-englan
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The problem with fake news isn’t just that some news may be faked. It is also that *any* news can potentially come to be seen as fake. It’s the fake news that claims real news to be fake that’s the most damaging.
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[Thread]1/ This one is about the fake news claiming that a sick boy on the floor of a hospital in leeds was staged by his mother. We know the story is real, Dr Yvette Oade, chief medical officer at Leeds even apologised bbc.com/news/uk-englan
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Amen. The thing is, if enough zealots trot out the line, it starts to defeat the facts on social media. I’ve no idea how we got here but we have to fight back before the zealots end up squatting in truth forevermore.
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A day that starts with picture of four year old sick boy lying on hospital floor ends with lies and distractions
-Tomorrow’s Guardian
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Related
Boris Johnson took a reporter's phone and put it in his pocket while being shown a picture of a child being treated on a hospital floor. #GE2019
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