Photo Credit: Phil Konstantin
California Governor Jerry Brown signing a bill banning all guns in the state is fake news. There is no truth to a report that Brown recently signed legislation that would ban all guns from ownership in the state of California. Rather, this fake news plays off the recent debate over gun control.
Where did this fake news originate? America’s Last Line of Defense published the fake news article on Feb. 18, 2018, reporting that California’s governor was making it illegal to own any firearm in the state in the wake of the tragic high school shooting in Florida. You can read the fake news below.
This morning, California Governor Jerry Brown put pen to paper, and signed controversial bill SB 558, which effectively renders the ownership of any firearm, illegal within the confines of the state.
The bill, supported by Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, renders it a violation of the law for anyone outside of law-enforcement or active duty military to possess or use “pistols, rifles or firearm weapons of any type”, with penalties ranging from stiff fines to jail time.
The Governor gave a sobering speech to onlookers about the horrifying recent events in Florida, and insisted that decisive action needed to be taken.
However, there is no truth to the above story. What was the problem with the story to make it false? For one thing, there is no legitimate news of Brown having signed any recent legislation banning all guns in the state. The State of California already has some of the strictest gun laws in the country, including bans on military-style assault rifles and high-capacity ammunition magazines.
In 2017, Brown did sign a measure that would expand a firearms ban on school campuses in California. The measure eliminates the power of school district administrators to give people with concealed weapon permits permission to have firearms on K-12 campuses. The bill was opposed by gun rights groups, including the National Rifle Association, as well as most Republican lawmakers.
The story includes comments citations to a “State Superintendent Sandra Battatowicz” and “California’s Attorney General Conky T. Bagger”. However, there is no actual “Sandra Battatowicz” but rather the California State Superintendent of Public Instruction is Tom Torlakson. Additionally, California’s Attorney General is Xavier Becerra, not “Conky T. Bagger”.
Here are some examples of the fake news being shared on social media.
California Governor Signs Bill Banning All Guns… https://t.co/8OIZiSp3CZ via @News2465684287
— News/24/TRUMP (@News2465684287) February 20, 2018
California Governor Signs Bill Banning All Guns… https://t.co/QC2gdUAOLG via @News2465684287
— POLITICS NEWS AMERICA (@News12america) February 20, 2018
Finally and most importantly, The Last Line of Defense carries the following disclaimer:
sat·ire ~ˈsaˌtī(ə)r
noun
the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, OR ridicule to expose and criticize people’s stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues.
If you disagree with the definition of satire or have decided it is synonymous with “comedy,” you should really just move along.
What did you think of the fake news that Brown recently signed a bill banning all guns in his state? Did you believe the fake news or see people sharing it falsely on social media? Let us know in the comments section.
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