Tinfoil Hat: What's up with all the fake web news stories?

[crispini]

Today: MSNBC "300,000 jobs" story.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x1002903

After the last debate, the fake Fox story abou the manicures that made it up on the website.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=967754

And the AP story about "Bush winning the election" that made it out to a WBAY-TV website.

http://politicalwire.com/archives/2004/10/07/ap_misfires.html

This is really starting to smell to me. I mean, I know this happens from time to time, but this is THREE in the past week, from three different sources. Any industrial-grade webmasters out there who would care to explain what's going on in the maintenance of a commercial type website? It this stuff really so automated that it gets in the pipe and all the way out to the web without checking? Or is something else going on here?

:tinfoilhat:

[teach1st]

1. For those who weren't around this morning...

[dave123williams]

2. It's very simple...

The only person lazier than a reporter, is an editor. Send them a press-release from a 'credible-sounding' organization, and they'll typically run it as hard news.

It's VERY easy to place bullshit stories.

[fishface]

3. They're just getting their ducks lined up for November.

Practice makes perfect

[doni_georgia]

4. Did MSNBC ever acknowledge mistake? What are the chances they were

hacked? They had a poll on there too about the election that was showing Bush killing Kerry - no matter how many times anyone votes the numbers (actual numbers of people voting) didn't change.