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The Skwawkbox

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The Skwawkbox
Type of site
New media outlet
EditorSteve Walker
URLskwawkbox.org

The Skwawkbox is a left-wing news blog based in the United Kingdom, founded in 2012 by Steve Walker.

Aims

It states that its aim is to "present information and analysis that will rarely make it into the mainstream media."[2] Founder Steve Walker has said: "The people we're trying to reach are what we call the outer parts of the Venn diagram. Not the real dedicated people on the left, but maybe their auntie or their uncle who reads their Facebook page."[3]

Content

Skwawkbox has been noted to have a regular run of stories that "appear to have been briefed by insiders close to the top of the Corbyn project", suggesting that certain senior individuals in the Labour Party use it to get their messages out.[4][5] Its following on Twitter has also meant that it has been involved in rallying online support for key pro-Corbyn hashtags,[6] with the news blog also having been involved with emailing and petitioning MPs within the Labour Party.[7]

Skwawkbox has regularly published exclusive interviews with Corbyn supporters such as Laura Pidcock and Chris Williamson. Skwawkbox's modus operandi has been described as "casting of doubt" on stories reported by others.[8]

In November 2017, Skwawkbox published an article suggesting that the real death toll from the Grenfell Tower Fire was covered up, based on claims from "multiple sources" that the government had placed a "D-notice" on coverage,[9] although a correction was subsequently published.[10] There was no such notice, which led MailOnline and The Sun in turn to publish articles accusing the site of spreading 'fake news'.[9] Walker complained about the MailOnline and Sun articles to the Independent Press Standards Organisation, which found there had been no breach of the editors' code of practice.[9] Other complaints against both publications regarding inaccuracy in their articles were upheld.[11]

Regulation

Skwawkbox subscribes to independent, Leveson-compliant press regulator IMPRESS. In March 2018 Skwawkbox considered cutting ties with IMPRESS following the publication of a controversial 1961 political pamphlet by key IMPRESS supporter Max Mosley;[12] however, it has remained a member.[13] According to the regulator's 2017/18 annual report, it upheld three complaints against Skwawkbox in the year up to 31 March 2018, the most of any member over the period. The same number of complaints were dismissed.[14]

In May 2019, Newsguard gave Skwawkbox a green approval mark, saying that Skwawkbox "generally maintains basic standards of credibility and transparency". While noting issues on separation of news and opinion, it also commented that "[a]rticles on The Skwawkbox, while agenda-driven, are typically fact-based and well-sourced, citing interviews or official statements from political leaders and activists, primary documents such as government reports, and subject ­matter experts. Links to supporting documents, social media posts, and other sources are often embedded in articles. Headlines accurately reflect content."[15][16]

On 3 June 2019, Newsguard upgraded Skwawkbox's rating further, including a pass for provision of content creator details. As well as its overall approval, Skwawkbox now passes on all criteria apart from separation of news and opinion.[17][18]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Skwawkbox.org Traffic, Demographics and Competitors". Alexa. Retrieved 2018-08-08.
  2. ^ "About the SKWAWKBOX and the aim of this blog". The Skwawkbox. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
  3. ^ Andrew Harrison. "Can you trust the mainstream media?". The Guardian. Retrieved 2018-08-08.
  4. ^ Jim Waterson (2017-05-06). "How A Small Group Of Pro-Corbyn Websites Built Enormous Audiences On Facebook". BuzzFeed News. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
  5. ^ "Corbynites call on Tom Watson to resign with new Twitter campaign". LabourList. 2018-03-25. Retrieved 2018-08-08.
  6. ^ "Anatomy Of A Tweetstorm: Looking At The Numbers Behind #ResignWatson". Gizmodo UK. 2018-08-04. Retrieved 2018-08-08.
  7. ^ Anne Perkins Deputy political editor. "Jeremy Corbyn decries abuse of antisemitism protest MPs". The Guardian. Retrieved 2018-08-08. {{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  8. ^ Corbynism: A Critical Approach, Emerald Group Publishing, By Matt Bolton, Frederick Harry Pitts, pages 242-243
  9. ^ a b c Matthew Moore (2017-11-10). "Corbynista site Skwawkbox published fake news about Grenfell death toll, Ipso rules". The Times. Retrieved 2018-08-08.
  10. ^ "D-notice update #Grenfell". The SKWAWKBOX. 2017-06-16. Retrieved 2018-09-18.
  11. ^ "SKWAWKBOX 1, Murdoch 0 – S*n corrects #fakenews about this blog". The SKWAWKBOX. 2017-07-13. Retrieved 2018-09-18.
  12. ^ Tobitt, Charlotte. "Skwawkbox among Impress members considering cutting ties with regulator over Daily Mail's Max Mosley revelations". Press Gazette. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
  13. ^ "Regulated Publications". IMPRESS.press. Retrieved 2018-09-18.
  14. ^ Tobitt, Charlotte. "Left-wing website The Canary most complained about Impress-regulated publication of 2017/18". Press Gazette. Retrieved 2019-02-07.
  15. ^ "Newsguard Nutrition Label". api.newsguardtech.com.
  16. ^ SW (27 May 2019). "SKWAWKBOX APPROVED BY NEWSGUARD FOR TRUST AND RELIABILITY". Skwawkbox. Retrieved 4 August 2019. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  17. ^ "Skwawkbox rating page". Newsguard.
  18. ^ SKWAWKBOX (2019-05-27). "SKWAWKBOX approved by Newsguard for trust and reliability". The SKWAWKBOX. Retrieved 2019-08-04.
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