GORTON, MANCHESTER — The Social Market Foundation published a report finding misinformation on social media is nearly three times more common in U.K. areas with minimal or no local journalism. The report analyzed more than 125,000 social media posts across local Facebook, X, and Nextdoor communities.
Misinformation increased by 56 percent in news-related posts before local elections, rising from 8.2 percent to 12.9 percent. Immigration and Islamophobia were the most common topics of misinformation on Facebook and X. The study found that two in five local Facebook groups and more than four in five X searches contained at least one misinformation post in their recent 1,000 posts.
The report said that more than 4.4 million people in the U.K. live in areas without a local news provider. Nearly one in 26 news-related posts on Facebook contained misinformation, while more than one in four news-related posts on X contained misinformation. Researchers randomly selected 95 U.K. locations and analyzed the first 1,000 posts displayed when scrolling through each platform's feed. The Social Market Foundation received BBC financial support for the research.
Jamie Gollings, the Social Market Foundation's deputy research director, said local misinformation has been under the radar for too long. "Local misinformation is the silent killer of trust in Britain. For too long it has gone under the radar. We cannot afford further erosion of local journalism, which is our best defence against local misinformation." Gollings said. Theo Bamber, chief executive of the News Media Association, said. "This report illustrates exactly why a strong local news media sector is vital in combating the growing threat of misinformation on social networks. We urge government to bring forward meaningful interventions to support the businesses that invest in trusted local journalism." Bamber said.
The report identified faked local authority communications, AI-generated content, and false claims of council corruption on social media. Examples included false claims that Birmingham council meetings were no longer conducted in English and London's congestion charge was expanding. A post falsely claimed there was a plan to make the countryside less white. In the Gorton and Denton by-election, misinformation was detected in three of four local social media groups, with 6.5 percent of news-related posts containing misinformation. One-fifth of fake news posts analyzed on Facebook were related to local issues such as planning decisions, transport, public services, and council politics.
Chi Onwurah, Labour chair of the science and technology select committee, said ministers were incorrect to reject her committee's recommendations on online misinformation. "It's clear that far more must be done to safeguard the public from unreliable online sources that are filling the void left by trusted local news. The government should adopt our recommendations and embed core principles – such as responsibility and transparency – into the online safety regime." Onwurah said. The U.K. government stated it recognizes the dangers of online misinformation and said it would focus its response on the most prevalent and concerning harms.