Fact check: Home Secretary’s latest opinion piece for newspaper was in June
A fake screenshot is circulating online.
A screenshot has been shared across the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, purporting to show an opinion article written by Yvette Cooper, headlined: “People who have Christmas trees in their living room may be far right. Please be vigilant as the festive season approaches.”
Evaluation
The screenshot is fake. Although it matches the correct typeface and the same byline image of Ms Cooper as used by The Guardian, there is no evidence it was ever published online. The image was first distributed by a social media user who has previously posted a different fake editorial article.
The facts
Yvette Cooper has contributed opinion articles to The Guardian for many years, with the earliest available online dating to April 2001. Guardian opinion pieces are distinguished online by an orange background, as in the screenshot. However, Ms Cooper’s most recent contribution was on June 22, writing about the Windrush scandal.
The Guardian’s press office confirmed to the PA news agency that the screenshot in the claim “is not and has never been an article or headline published by the Guardian”.
The screenshot posted on X also shows a sub-menu of the Opinion section listing “Columnists”, “Gender”, “Cartoons”, “Race”, “Letters” and “Politics”. However, looking at the actual website shows the sub-sections in the current design to be “The Guardian view”, “Columnists”, “Cartoons”, “Opinion videos” and “Letters”. This indicates the image has been manipulated and does not represent a truthful capture of the website.
The erroneous banner element is also present in another apparent Yvette Cooper editorial screenshot posted by the same social media user in July. This alleged article similarly does not appear on The Guardian’s website.
The byline image of Ms Cooper and the typeface used for the headline and date do match the usual formatting of the website. This could have been done using photo manipulation software, by editing the web page’s HTML source code or by other means.
The PA news agency could not find any evidence that the Home Secretary has previously voiced any opposition to the celebration of Christmas or associated it with far-right politics. Last year, Ms Cooper gave away mince pies and her office organised a competition to design a Christmas card at a primary school in her constituency.
Links
Previous screenshot on X (archived)
In favour of motherhood | Yvette Cooper, MP | The Guardian (archived)
The Guardian readers’ editor on why colour has taken on a new significance in the recent redesign | Chris Elliott | The Guardian (archived)
The Tories betrayed the Windrush victims – we will stand by them | Yvette Cooper | The Guardian (archived)
Yvette Cooper’s contributor page at The Guardian (archived)
Yvette Cooper MP visits Larks Hill – Larks Hill Junior & Infant School : Larks Hill Junior & Infant School (archived)
Yvette Cooper – Getting in the festive spirit today, out… | Facebook (archived)
