Unity News Network
Frogs, clowns, and swastikas Alt-right |
Chuds |
Rebuilding the Reich, one meme at a time |
Buzzwords and dogwhistles |
“”What we do is not hyper-partisan – it’s populist.
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—David Clews[1] |
“”If I was a taxi driver and someone got in and went and murdered someone after I dropped them off, is the taxi driver responsible for that person being murdered?
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—David Clews[1] |
Unity News Network (UNN) is a highly-untrustworthy far-right[note 1] political webshite[2][3] founded in 2018 by alt-right conspiracy theorist David Clews and former UKIP Scotland youth leader Carl Pearson,[4][5][6] which according to anti-fascist investigators is, "growing all the time."[7]
UNN has built its audience within the right-wing conspiracy theory protest scene by supporting Brexit and the Free Tommy Robinson protests, spreading COVID-19 conspiracies, and decrying White Genocide and cultural Marxism.[8] It has also platformed the likes of Mark Collett, Nick Griffin and James Costello. This shite is funded by online advertising, donations, and merchandising.[2]
UK independent press regulator IMPRESS expelled UNN in 2022 following a systemic breach of its standards code with regards to a large number of problematic tweets and articles about Ukraine and the pandemic.[9]
Content warnings[edit]
2024 United Kingdom riots[edit]
UNN fanned the flames of the 2024 United Kingdom riots with a live stream of Clews from Costa Rica spreading Bernie Spofforth's false identification of the perpetrator of the Southport stabbing as a Muslim immigrant.[5][10] Blame for the attack and subsequent riots was placed on the British authorities, with the statement:[7]
Starmer and his government have continued, after decades of attacks on people concerned around mass migration and the way in which this country is run, to lambast a vast swathe of the populace. Peaceful non violent protest is a democratic right so of course people should still have the right to do so. To suggest otherwise is dictatorial communism.
The response of UNN's audience was predictable with anti-fascist investigators noting:[7]
The stuff on UNN’s Telegram in the past couple of weeks has been off the scale with racist commentary and there’s no doubt such content is fanning the flames of racial unrest.
Following Spofforth's arrest, commenting was hastily disabled and Clews fled to exile in Poland,[11] from where he solicited donations.[12]
Criticism[edit]
Research by King’s College London has concluded that people engaged with UNN and other alternative media sources are significantly more likely to believe in conspiracy theories and the effectiveness of direct action.[13] Lead researcher Dr Rod Dacombe told The Times:[10]
What’s really critical is that UNN and the other alternative news sites don’t just say here’s what’s happening. They promote action, whether that’s by calling for people to go out on the streets or to look things up online, they use a ‘moral’ or ‘ethical’ call to action. The people who are engaged in these conspiracy theories are relatively small in number but highly motivated and highly engaged.
Clews has responded to such criticisms with a bizarre analogy about a taxi driver not being responsible for a murder committed by one of his passengers.[1]
Key people[edit]
- David Clews (October 1983–):[14] co-founder and lead correspondent of UNN.[10]
- Carl Dean Pearson (November 1997–):[15] co-founder and Editor-in-Chief (until January 2022).
Footnotes[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Ukip 2.0: young, angry, digital and extreme by Josh Halliday and Peter Walker (March 3, 2019) The Guardian
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Unity News Network – Bias and Credibility Media Bias/Fact Check
- ↑ UNITY NEWS NETWORK LTD Companies House
- ↑ Revealed: The far-right groups operating in Scotland by James Walker The National
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Rogues’ gallery of figures fanning the flames of violence by Tom Witherow and Mario Ledwith (August 5, 2024) The Times
- ↑ Actors, activists and conspiracy theorists – a guide to the British far right by Ben Quinn (August 7, 2024) The Guardian
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Far-right Scottish influencer shuts down social media chat after "tsunami" of racist comments by Mark McGivern (August 10, 2024) Daily Record
- ↑ CASE FILE: Unity News Network Hope Not Hate
- ↑ Impress kicks out Unity News Network over Covid vaccine and Ukraine coverage by Bron Maher (October 25, 2022) Press Gazette
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 The far-right influencer from Renfrew who fanned flames after Southport killings by Dominic Hauschild (August 10, 2024) The Sunday Times
- ↑ Clueless Clews does a runner (August 31, 2024) Searchlight
- ↑ Far-right influencer begs for donations after fleeing Scotland as he fears arrest by Mark McGivern (August 17, 2024) Daily Record
- ↑ Conspiracy belief among the UK public and the role of alternative media King’s College London
- ↑ David CLEWS Companies House
- ↑ Carl Dean PEARSON Companies House