He wanted to see “stupid fake news” in the media, rather than “more hateful or polarizing fake news” – and also secure a publicity stunt for his new show. In recent weeks, English comedian Joe Lycett has managed to broadcast four fake news stories in the English media.
“I wanted to use the space they [les médias] allegedly used to spread hatred, distress and photos of Amanda Holden [une présentatrice anglaise] he joked during the premiere of the new season of Late Night Lycetton Channel 4, Friday.
A week earlier, the actor had transformed British Internet users into detectives, asking them to identify this false information.
Ian “H” Watkins was in on it
A veil of suspicion was then cast over all the unusual news in recent weeks. The result ? The report about North Korean TV blurring a BBC presenter’s jeans is genuine. On the other hand, the famous street artist Banksy did not paint a fresco of Dorothy, a character from Wizard of Oz, in Birmingham. Men in this town don’t have the longest penises in the country either. “Adam”, a supposed five-a-side football player, also did not discover a bruise in the shape of Prince Harry on his thigh. Finally, a town in Wales is not going to erect a statue to the glory of Ian “H” Watkins, member of the 1990s pop group Steps – a cult group across the Channel, but which never really shook people the charts in France, the explanation maybe residing here.
How did the presenter manage to bring these stories into THE Daily Mail, on the Sky channel website or on a BBC radio show? Joe Lycett did not respond to our interview request due to lack of availability. However, he benefited from the complicity of Ian “H” Watkins, who had relayed “the information” about the statue on his Instagram account.
The media quickly expressed doubts
If Joe Lycett, known across the Channel for his hoaxes, was delighted to have succeeded in his attempt, on closer inspection, his success is rather nuanced. Several media outlets quickly cast doubt on the veracity of these stories. “We’re not so sure that this man’s blue [qui ressemble] to Prince Harry is not a ruse”, wrote the newspaper Metro when the story appeared.
As for the mysterious fresco of Dorothy that appeared overnight in Birmingham, the city where Joe Lycett is from, several media took care to contact representatives of Banksy, who denied that the artist, whose real identity has never been confirmed, painted this work. As for the famous statue, BBC News has publishedtwo days after this story appeared, an article questioning its veracity.
The hoax was recently received by part of the British press. THE New Statesman underlines that the joke does not attack “the causes” of the problem. “The newsrooms are sorely lacking in resources,” writes the weekly.
“The people who published Lycett’s articles are not flashy news anchors with inflated egos, nor newspaper editors happy to produce hard-hitting articles for profit – they are probably inexperienced, exhausted journalists who published ten more stories that day to earn less than a living wage. » A race for audiences and a lack of resources that make counterfeiters good business.