Washington: Hillary Clinton issued a stern warning Thursday against the proliferation of fake news, branding it an epidemic with “real world consequences” that must be addressed in order to protect the nation’s democracy.
The phenomenon nearly turned deadly this week when a rifle-wielding man entered a pizza restaurant in Washington saying he wanted to investigate a fake news story that wrongly stated the Comet Ping Pong restaurant was a centre for child abduction linked to Ms Clinton.
“It’s now clear that so-called fake news can have real world consequences,” Ms Clinton told current and former US lawmakers on Capitol Hill where she attended a ceremony for outgoing Democratic Senate minority leader Harry Reid.
“This isn’t about politics, or partisanship. Lives are at risk,” she said as she blasted “the epidemic of malicious fake news and false propaganda that flooded social media over the past year.” The “danger” must be addressed quickly, she stressed. “It’s imperative that leaders from the private sector and the public sector step up to protect our democracy and innocent lives.”
The remarks were part of her second public address since her concession speech the day after the election. The “pizzagate” story was widely shared before the November 8 Election Day.
