NO—Klaus Schwab is not “The Universal Bishop!”
Browsing my timeline on X / Twitter over a Sunday-morning cuppa, I came across a new post from an unknown source formatted like a regular news-agency video report. The ‘reporter’—a “TVP Sean”—made weird statements such as the Pope dubbing Klaus Schwab—of World Economic Forum fame—as “the Universal Bishop.”
The lack of caffeine coupled with my distaste for Schwab, the WEF & the liberalization of the Church almost got the better of me! Thankfully, within minutes I had enough evidence to say that this is a pure fabrication—another on-line hoax! (…sad to admit that the world has gone bat-shit crazy, so I still had to check!)
In summary, I found no verification on the Vatican website, nor anything from an internet search. Secondly, something very similar from the ‘mother site’ [The Speaker’s Voice] was found to be a hoax in 2023! In addition, Sean provided no valid references and a scan of his previous posts shows a litany of tripe: any Amadán could know Sean spews BS. (I will be blocking his site shortly.)
The Issue
CA readers receive Catholic Arena on-line FOR FREE on the website CatholicArena.com or through X/Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. Like many, much of our information is now received digitally.
We should take all information with a healthy dose of skepticism.
Remember how Main Stream Media churned out the government slop about COVID (& the same is now happening with MonkeyPox.)
An example of manipulation in Ireland is how MSM has blacked-out the assault on Fr. Paul Murphy at Galway Barracks, just a few days ago. (CA X post to the right.)
In Canada, Trudeau has essentially bought the support of MSM after giving “…$600 million, five-year commitment consists mostly of tax credits. It’s open to “qualified Canadian journalism organizations“; there has been considerable debate over who should or should not be included under that category.” Small news outlets like RebelNews (@RebelNewsOnline on X) aggressively questions government policy and have been excluded from this funding.
Social-Media [a.k.a. “Anti-Social Media”] has major problems with censorship.
Whether you like Trump or not, it is clear that META (Facebook) and (the former) Twitter used their algorithm to censor/bias information going into the 2020 US election. One example is the suppression of the Hunter Biden laptop story.
Europe is now trying to censor X & Elon Musk because he has made it a haven for free speech and they cannot control “the narrative.” Free speech means that there is still some misinformation, hence this article! Each of us must consider the validity of every source and, if need be, check further.
So, how to spot a hoax?
Consider the source: look for clues. Are there false links or do they pretend to be MSM. Some even admit to being conspiracy theorists.
Read beyond the headline: the headline does not tell the whole story—read the article. (In publishing the headline & byline is the prerogative of the editor, not the author.)
Is it Satire? One of the funniest sites on Twitter was the fictitious Titania McGrath.
Titania was the brainchild of comedian and commentator Andrew Doyle (who authored ‘her’ book WOKE: a guide to social justice.”)
Check the author: Is the author known to be honest and thorough?
References? Even though the story cites an “official source”, are they valid?
Check the date: Some stories rehash of distant events.
Check your personal bias: Confirmation bias leads us to put more stock in information which confirms their beliefs and we discount information that does not.
Consult a Fact Checker: Sadly, many fact checkers also have some political bias (mostly to the Left!)
I like Politifact’s categories which are not just true or false but include “Mostly False”, “Half True”, “Mostly True” and “Pants on Fire” for the egregious lies. Remember: a grain of truth is often the basis of a good lie!
A list of several Fact Checkers is below. (Summarized from:
https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/2021/04/28/the-10-best-fact-checkers-for-2021/ )
FactCheck.org monitors the factual accuracy of what is said by major U.S. political players in the form of TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews, and news releases.
Science Feedback- has two websites: Climate Feedback, which reviews climate-related claims, and Health Feedback, which reviews health and medical claims.
Lead Stories- uses a specific engine called the Trendolizer, which tracks story trends that allows them to debunk fake news before becoming viral.
Politifact– a fact-checking website that rates the accuracy of claims by elected officials and others who speak up in American politics.
AFP Fact Check– is a French fact checker from Agence France-Presse (AFP). They frequently fact-check fake photos and videos as well. It is a good English language fact-checker for non-USA fact checking.
Reuters Fact Check- from the UK-based Reuters which focuses on social media hoaxes and political statements.
Full Fact- an independent fact-checker in the United Kingdom. Their focus is on British political claims and misinformation. (Essentially, a British Politifact.)
Check Your Fact- is owned by the Daily Caller which is apparently considered not a reliable news organization, but it operates independently and adheres to the IFCN principles. (& is one of the few right-leaning fact-checkers.) They focus on hoaxes and political statements.
USA Today Fact Check- is a fact-checking service which apparently tends to fact-check more right-leaning claims.
Open Secrets– is the best source for discovering how much and where candidates get their money. They also track US lobbying groups and who is funding them.
The Sunlight Foundation– primary focus is on money’s role in politics.
Snopes- the oldest fact-checker! A fact-checker for urban legends, hoaxes, and politics. (but is not part of the IFCN: see below.)
Ballotpedia- covers American federal, state, and local politics, elections, and public policy.
Most reputable fact checkers are members of the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) “which sets a code of principles that must be followed to remain a part of the network. You can view their code of principles here” but remember that most are Left leaning! Also, Wikipedia maintains a list of internet hoaxes.
A.I.
AI is getting so realistic that soon it is going to be very difficult to verify any image or video.
First, do not forward or re-post / re-Tweet something which is likely to be false—especially if it could harm someone else. Check first.
So, when we get duped…
Despite our best efforts, we will be duped sometime. On X, Community Notes can provide essential background information—read them!
If we have posted something factually incorrect we should remove or amend it immediately. If it was grievous, perhaps we should post a retraction or apology.
I know it sounds impossible, but yes—even posts from CA can be in error! (& this could be about Catholic Theology as we are not Apologists nor Canon Lawyers.) Readers may DM me through X / Twitter @kevinhay77 or email the editor at editor@catholicarena.com.
Please be vigilant.
Some loons feed on our vulnerability—some just want to watch the world burn.
Quote from Alfred in the Dark Knight, played by Michael Caine.
Kevin Hay.
You can follow Kevin on 𝕏 ( Twitter / Twi𝕏 ) @ kevinhay77