On Nov. 3, 2020, as states across the U.S. started to count ballots in the presidential election, information was flying quickly around social media. While this rapid influx of data helped to keep the voting public informed, it also aided in the spread of misinformation as erroneous tweets quickly spread before they could be corrected.
Conservative columnist Matt Mackowiak, for instance, posted a tweet claiming that Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden had received 100% of newly counted ballots — approximately 128,000 — in the battleground state of Michigan. Mackowiak later deleted this tweet after it was revealed that the suspicious boost was the result of a typo, but not before the claim was shared by popular conservative writer Matt Walsh, who wrote that "this is reason enough to go to court. No honest person can look at this and say it's normal and unconcerning." U.S. President Donald Trump then retweeted that tweet, writing: "WHAT IS THIS ALL ABOUT?"
Here's a look at Mackowiak's original tweet, as well as the message he posted explaining why he deleted his original post:
This tweet was taken and share honestly. I have now learned the MI update referenced was a typo in one county.
I have deleted the original tweet.
