Beware distortion when pot is stirred

TRUE story: once upon a time a west Wales local authority presented me with a spoon engraved with the message, 'To the biggest stirrer in town.'

- Robert Lloyd

Correction: the message had a four letter word beginning with S inserted between the words 'biggest' and 'stirrer'. But, this being a family newspaper, I have to be careful what I say in print!

It was a joke, delivered without malice and accepted as something of a badge of honour by a journalist who enjoyed tilting at civic windmills and shining a light into the dark corners of council administration.

Of course, with the rise of social media, 'stirring' has become a much bigger issue. We live in the age of so-called citizen journalists. Most, of course, are not qualified professional journalists and many play fast and loose with a description which would label them as decent citizens.

Smartphones, social media and online platforms are the weapons of choice for citizen journalists, who use the tools to amplify opinions often built on the quicksands of internet rumours and wild speculation.

There are a few examples from the last week.

In Caerphilly, police started an investigation after children visiting a Scouts camp were filmed and subjected to offensive comments on social media amid unfounded speculation about the site being used to house 'immigrants'. Internet posts contained 'mistruths' and 'inappropriate and offensive language,' according to Gwent Police, who reminded people to 'think twice about what they might read online'.

Over in Merthyr, the council said 'false rumours' were spreading on social media claiming that asylum seekers and immigrants were being housed at the Castle Hotel in the town centre.