May 26, 2020

Trump Sent a Tweet So Misleading That Twitter Put a Disclaimer on It

The social media platform added a warning label to two of the president’s misleading tweets about mail-in voting.

Stefani Reynolds/CNP/Zuma

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Twitter added a fact-check label to two of President Donald Trump’s tweets, marking the first time the social media platform has curbed the president’s use of the site for spreading lies.

On Tuesday, Trump claimed that mail-in ballots would lead to voter fraud.

Clicking a blue exclamation point labeled “Get the facts about mail-in ballots” takes users to a page refuting the claim that mail-in ballots have any connection with voter fraud. The page also clarifies that in California, only registered voters—not, as Trump claims, “anyone living in the state, no matter who they are or how they got there”—would receive mail-in ballots.

Following criticism that Twitter was not doing enough to address the regular onslaught of misinformation, the platform announced in June 2019 that it would add warning labels to deceitful or inaccurate tweets by elected officials. Twitter spokesperson Katie Rosborough told the Washington Post that Trump’s tweets “contain potentially misleading information about voting processes and have been labeled to provide additional context around mail-in ballots.”

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