QUESTIONABLE SOURCE
A questionable source exhibits one or more of the following: extreme bias, consistent promotion of propaganda/conspiracies, poor or no sourcing to credible information, a complete lack of transparency, and/or is fake news. Fake News is the deliberate attempt to publish hoaxes and/or disinformation for profit or influence (Learn More). Sources listed in the Questionable Category may be untrustworthy and should be fact-checked on a per-article basis. Please note sources on this list are not considered fake news unless specifically written in the reasoning section for that source. See all Questionable sources.
- Overall, we rate Byoblu.com as right-biased and questionable based on publishing unsubstantiated and false medical claims, especially concerning the COVID-19 pandemic. The site’s lack of transparency regarding certain claims and its tendency to present unverified information without context affects its overall credibility.
Detailed Report
Questionable Reasoning: Propaganda, Conspiracy, Pseudoscience, Poor Sourcing, Failed Fact Checks, Lack of Transparency
Bias Rating: EXTREME RIGHT
Factual Reporting: VERY LOW
Country: Italy
MBFC’s Country Freedom Rating: MOSTLY FREE
Media Type: Website
Traffic/Popularity: Medium Traffic
MBFC Credibility Rating: LOW CREDIBILITY
History
Byoblu.com is a video blogging site of Italian blogger Claudio Messora. It describes itself as “La TV dei Cittadini.” The site combines short articles with video reports by ByoBlu staff and commentary by Messora. Byoblu.com is based in Milan-Italy.
Read our profile on the Italian government’s influence on media.
Funded by / Ownership
The site is published by ByoBlu Edizioni Srls. Claudio Messora, a former Five Star Movement (anti-establishment, populist right-wing political party) communication consultant, owns ByoBlu.com, which generates revenue through subscriptions, advertisements, and donations. The site has an online store where it sells merchandise.
Analysis / Bias
Byoblu.com has been criticized for publishing unsubstantiated medical claims, including false information about the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, an article titled “Pfizer vaccine, a 2-year-old American child dies after second shot” reported the death of a 2-year-old girl following the administration of the Pfizer vaccine without providing context about VAERS’ limitations. VAERS is a passive surveillance system that collects unverified reports, which cannot be used to establish causality.
Another example is a video interview headlined “PADS, LOCKDOWNS, MASKS: EVERYTHING THEY WON’T MAKE ME SAY ON TV – STEFANO MONTANARI,” which gives a platform to Dr. Stefano Montanari, who is known for making unsubstantiated health claims. The article criticizes mainstream media for not allowing Montanari to express his views, framing it as a freedom of expression issue. Byoblu presents itself as an alternative platform that allows Montanari to speak “without any type of censorship.”
The article implies that mainstream media censors alternative viewpoints by limiting Montanari’s airtime and editing his statements. This framing suggests a bias against mainstream media and health protocols related to COVID-19. The article does not make specific factual claims but focuses on the narrative that mainstream media suppresses alternative viewpoints. However, it’s worth noting that the views it promotes (those of Dr. Montanari) have been criticized for lacking factual basis. According to a fact-check by VoxUkraine, Montanari’s claims are false. Therefore, the article/video indirectly disseminates information unsupported by scientific evidence.
Failed Fact Checks
- Stefano Montanari exposes the ‘truth’ about coronavirus vaccinations – False
- Democrats are creating bioweapons in the Ukraine. – False
- ‘New evidence shows wearing face mask can help coronavirus enter the brain and pose more health risk, warn expert’ – Unsupported
- The mRNA COVID-19 vaccines are “really gene therapy.” – False
Overall, we rate Byoblu.com as right-biased and questionable based on publishing unsubstantiated and false medical claims, especially concerning the COVID-19 pandemic. The site’s lack of transparency regarding certain claims and its tendency to present unverified information without context affects its overall credibility. (M. Huitsing 09/03/2023)
Source: https://www.byoblu.com/
Last Updated on September 4, 2023 by Media Bias Fact Check
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