Dawn falls prey to fake tweet

 JournalismPakistan.com |  Published: 18 February 2022

Dawn has apologized for reporting a comment from a fake Twitter account of Finance Ministry spokesperson Muzzammil Aslam. This incident raises concerns about media accuracy and integrity.

Summary

ISLAMABAD—Dawn has fallen prey to fake news. In its main story on February 17—Petrol bomb’ will hit where it hurts most— the paper quoted a fake tweet of the spokesperson of the federal finance ministry.

The paper quoted Muzzammil Aslam saying that “the same number of vehicles plying on roads and people absorbing the (oil) shock because of high per capita income due to rebasing of economy.”

It is essential to highlight that Aslam had denied making that comment on Twitter.

In a tweet, the spokesman wondered if the standards of journalism have fallen or if it is a conscious effort to spread despondency. “Followed by electronic media the print media of @dawn_com has published the fake Twitter account story of mine. Clearly shows the down fall of this media. I don’t know whether it’s ignorance or intentional but clearly they are doing their best to spread despondency”.

On Friday, Dawn regretted the error. In a clarification, the paper said a comment about fuel prices was mistakenly attributed to Finance Ministry spokesperson Muzzammil Aslam. “The comment came from a fake Twitter ID. The error is regretted.”

It is not the first time Dawn has erred regarding the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. It has twice equated the party with the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.