The recent FLOTUS news is causing more fake images to circulate. Misinfo list is catching some of them.

Lots more fake images/videos from #Artemis today.

Clout isn't gonna chase itself.

Misinformation comes in many forms, and isn't always political.

This video isn't from Artemis II and @velocity69.bsky.social bsky.social knows it because they block anyone who points it out.

bsky.app/profile/velo...

Update: I told them I was “looking forward to hearing from their very real and competent lawyers” and they blocked again.

The chat history has been:

"Explain why we are on this list or (legal consequences)"
Me: "You're on it because..."
"Remove us from the list or (legal consequences)"
Me: "You're obviously not a lawyer but you can report it to Bluesky if you want."
<block>
<unblock 3 days later to send the above>

To the attention of the user @talesofmoderation.bsky.social owner: After 48 hours, we contact you to inform you of the following, in relation to the inclusion of <redacted-follow-farmer> in "Mis/Disinformation Risks (Follow Farming, etc)" moderation list. You have committed an abuse specified in principle 2, section B, point II, of the "Bluesky Community Guidelines" which expressly states: "Do not abuse Bluesky's features (lists, tags, community moderation tools), engage in mass reports in bad faith, use automated harassment systems, or create single-purpose harassment accounts." Therefore, a complaint will be filed against you with Bluesky for non-compliance with moderation guidelines. It is also failing to comply with the regulations of the EU Digital Services Act, which aims to create a safer digital space in which users' fundamental rights are protected. Under this regulation, you are required to "Provide clear information about content moderation decisions," which you have not been required to comply with upon request. Having indicated and provided you with a time of 48 hours for compliance with the regulations, and having refused to do so in a timely manner, we have no choice but to file a complaint against you before the bodies responsible for compliance with the terms of the "EU Digital Services Act", (2021/784) that will be responsible for requesting Bluesky your identification so that the infringement lawsuit can be notified and you can be brought carry out legal proceedings for damage to honour and/or integrity and image. With nothing more to add for the time being, it will be our lawyers who will contact you. Until then, have a nice day.

Got a real doozy of a DM today (name redacted). They claim to have lawyers! And #Listifications of course.

I wouldn't call myself an arbiter, but a provider of options. It's up to the person who subscribes to decide whether the criteria the list uses is to their liking.

Moderation lists don't cause reputational harm to anyone on them, so no I'm not worried about that.

baileytownsend.dev/label-watcher PDS Admin tool make it easier to moderate your PDS with labels

Oops, here's the link! tangled.org/baileytownse...

Reminder, if you run a PDS, you can tail @skywatch.blue with @baileytownsend.dev's label-watcher, and you can can get alerted when we apply an inauthentic-fundraising, spam, bulk-following, engagement-abuse, or platform-manipulation label to an account on your PDS.

I did not share the original story because my gut was that the sourcing was dubious. Someone who knows more about the sole source confirms that skepticism. Don't fall for clickbait, read the piece linked below.

(If the story is confirmed by other outlets, that's another thing. But ... it's not)

Oh good Sky is back.

I Caught POLITICO and the New York Times Laundering Pink Slime "News" How the sexist backlash to AOC and Gretchen Whitmer at the Munich Security Conference led me to a scammy "local news" outlet pushing a coordinated right-wing narrative

Interesting post about the coordinated anti-AOC smear campaign. It's 2016 again! Fake local news outlets on Facebook getting picked up until eventually it winds up in the Washington Post.

The list is based on findings from studies of how misinformation spreads online. Call that opinion if you want. Not my business.

Evaluating risk is only partly about intent. The list is tremendously useful on my personal account, and the others using it appear to feel the same.

No luck required.

This list exists to help its subscribers avoid false information, not to educate the people who are added to it. An account that has already shared misinformation is much more likely to do so again, and it belongs on the list.

This person reposted a known fake photo of Epstein and Nigel Farange.

Misinformation risk confirmed.

A quick guide to spotting misinformation Tips for fact-checking, staying informed and talking it out

Or UNICEF.
www.unicef.org/eca/stories/...

10 Ways to Spot Disinformation on the Internet More than 7 in 10 Americans say they worry about disinformation on the web, according to a study. Find out how you can sift the facts from the fakes.​

Or this from AARP.
www.aarp.org/personal-tec...

The 'Sift' strategy: A four-step method for spotting misinformation Pioneered by digital literacy experts, the "Sift" strategy is a technique for spotting fake news and misleading social media posts, says Amanda Ruggeri.

But again, most of this is advise we've heard countless times. People often get wrapped up in the moment and forget.

Like this from the BBC.

www.bbc.com/future/artic...

Other good questions are: Who do they follow? and How often do they post?

If one or both are large numbers, be wary. There's only so much vetting a person can do of who they follow or what they share.

Consider unfollowing.

None of these are rules, but all are worth consideration.

As for who to follow/avoid: Are they willing to delete the false information? A reply or follow-up post isn't good enough.

If they won't delete, they're either too interested in clout to care, or are spreading it purposefully.

For me that's a block every time.

I don't track bots or trolls, but questions help avoid spreading misinfo:
- Who posted it? Are they a legit source?
- Does it include links to a reliable source?
- Is it fact-based (names, real places, dates/times) or emotional?
- Do text/images show signs of AI use?

This is all common advise now.

You're free to create any list you want, of course. My policy is to ignore moderation lists and block feed lists (which can be used for targeting), if I'm added to them.

Then as far as I'm concerned they don't exist and I just go on with life.

This is the way

*ahem*

Reason for today's group was posted two hours ago.

No can do:

Probably this:

Large addition (several hundred) to the misinformation list today after a screen shot of a fake Truth Social post made the rounds yesterday.

Added all the primary posts that shared the false information, along with quote posts that weren't calling it out as fake.

The most BS part is that Replies. Are. Not. Turned. Off.

Honestly when I see a moronic statement like this, I'm expecting to discover they showed up in Nov/24 with the rest of hashtag-resist.

This person got here in 2023. How are they still this bad at using Blueksy?

Neat