Fox News Flash top headlines for March 10
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USA Today reporters fact-checked the satirical website the Babylon Bee for publishing a satirical headline about President Biden selling Alaska.
On Monday, Babylon Bee posted the headline, "Biden Sells Alaska Back To Russia So We Can Start Drilling For Oil There Again" in response to rising gas prices and President Biden's plan to import more oil from foreign countries rather than expand domestic production.
St. Louis, MO. A USA Today newspaper dispenser. (Getty Images)
"The deliberate and premeditated invasion of Ukraine by brutal dictator Vladimir Putin has forced the U.S. to reassess the importance of energy independence. With this new resolve, the Biden Administration has taken its first step toward increasing oil production for Americans by selling Alaska back to Russia, so we can start drilling for oil there again," the Babylon Bee wrote.
The Facebook page Being Libertarian posted it to their page, and it was shared more than 2,000 times. The Facebook post from the group is apparently what triggered the USA Today to do a fact-check on the satirical article. Although fact-checker Ana Faguy referenced several times that the Babylon Bee was a satire site, the article still required her to rate the claim as "SATIRE" after her analysis.
A motorist pumps gasoline at a Mobil gas station following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in West Hollywood, Calif., Friday, Feb. 25, 2022. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
"Based on our research, we rate SATIRE the claim that Biden plans to sell Alaska to Russia. The claim stems from an article published by The Babylon Bee, a satire website. There is no evidence Biden plans to sell Alaska," Faguy wrote.
The Babylon Bee has been frequently targeted by mainstream media outlets such as the New York Times and CNN for pushing "misinformation" despite promoting itself as a pure satire site. Facebook also flagged one article as misinformation for claiming that CNN puts its news through a washing machine to spin it before they put it on the air.
New York, USA - September 27, 2019: The New York Times Headquarters in Midtown Manhattan. Located on 8th Ave it was completed in 2007 by the famous italian architect Renzo Piano. (iStock)
The Babylon Bee’s official Twitter account responded to USA Today's fact-check on Thursday.
"Thanks to the fact-checkers at @USATODAY who have pointed out that this story is satire. We would like to retract it, as we now realize it is false and was entirely made up," Babylon Bee tweeted "We do our best to only share 100% true headlines, but sometimes we get one wrong. We will do better."