Image Credit: SOPA Images via Getty Images 
UK media outlets reported that COVID hospitalizations are “14 times higher” than at this time last year, despite this being demonstrably false.
Both Sky News and ITV reported the comments of NHS chief executive Amanda Pritchard, who used the figure during a plea for people to take booster vaccines.
Pritchard said the NHS was “running hot” and warned of difficult months ahead.
Bizarre situation where Sky and ITV are leading with Fake News pic.twitter.com/vC4Wu8n1Dd
— Politics For All (@PoliticsForAlI) November 8, 2021
However, it was subsequently revealed that she had been using old data to make the claim that hospitalizations were 14 times higher than this time last year.
The NHS later claimed that Pritchard “was referring to the most recently published statistics in August” to make the claim.
However, the latest hospitalization numbers are available on the NHS website and show nowhere near the “14 times” level claimed by Pritchard.
ⓘ https://t.co/HbOgwl44Ay pic.twitter.com/bqducfkFRs
— Politics For All (@PoliticsForAlI) November 8, 2021
Maybe news outlets should have bothered to check the figures before turing Pritchard’s erroneous claim into a blaring headline.
Sky News subsequently deleted their false tweet.
| NEW: Sky News have now deleted their false tweet about Covid hospitalisations pic.twitter.com/aITt7k4exb
— Politics For All (@PoliticsForAlI) November 8, 2021
As we previously highlighted, news networks have largely been ignoring the fact that COVID cases have been dropping in the UK over the past two weeks, after previously seizing upon a short term rise in cases to lobby for restrictions to be re-imposed.
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