The BBC has no plans to dismantle the statue of George Orwell, which stands in front of one of its buildings in London. - Twitter screenshot

  • No, the BBC has no plans to dismantle a statue of novelist and essayist George Orwell installed since 2017 in London.
  • That's what a false tweet relayed thousands of times on Twitter says.
  • The BBC explains to 20 Minutes that it has no plans to remove the statue.

A statue of George Orwell soon dismantled by the BBC? It is false and yet it is shared thousands of times. In a tweet published on June 14, a surfer, who describes himself in particular as "opposed to the BBC", argues that "the statue of Orwell in front of the BBC must be removed. Orwell's themes "no longer match the values ​​of the BBC" ".

The tweet is accompanied by a fake screenshot from the British daily  The Guardian .

The surfer who posted this fake screenshot admitted having invented the information. - Twitter screenshot

The tweet was widely heard as a statue of Churchill was tagged in London on June 7 and that of a slave trader was knocked down in Bristol the next day. After the death of George Floyd, the representation in public space of controversial historical figures is the subject of debate. 

FAKE OFF

The BBC has no plans to remove the statue from its current location, confirms the British public audiovisual group to 20 Minutes . The statue of the author of 1984 and the Quai de Wigan stands in front of one of its London buildings since 2017. George Orwell worked for the "Beeb" between 1941 and 1943.

As for the screenshot that appears in the tweet, it is false. There are no traces of this alleged advertisement on the Guardian website . The screenshot diverts an authentic article from the newspaper, which announced almost three years ago the installation of the statue.

The author of the tweet himself admitted having invented the false claim. "I tried to make it obvious [the fake], but, thinking about it, the BBC might do it," he writes. I give five years before it happens! "

The BBC is regularly accused in the UK of being influenced politically. "Traditionally, the BBC is seen as left by the right and as right by the left," said Richard Thomas and Declan McDowell-Naylord, two researchers, on The Conversation site.

Media

Report information that you think is false to the "Fake Off" team of "20 Minutes"

News

North: A statue of General De Gaulle covered with paint in Hautmont

  • Fake Off
  • London
  • United Kingdom
  • World
  • Statue
  • BBC