Season 6 of Sky News’ ‘Storycast’ podcast is back and this time – another investigation that made waves in British media and beyond is under their microscope. The case is that of Ellie Williams, a 19-year-old girl who posted on social media with accusations of rape, trafficking and grooming and was eventually charged guilty in connection to the posts.
Ellie Williams’ story spread far beyond the North of England where she was based when, at the height of lockdown, she posted her accusation with evidence of the injuries that were inflicted to her social channels. It was then shared over 100 thousand times. The rumours spread quickly and soon, attacks on Asian men in Barrow-in-Furness became commonplace, and all of them were linked to Ellie’s posts.
Sky News’ team of Jason Farrell and Liz Lane ask: How did this happen? And crucially, who let this happen and why? Through an engrossing and thorough investigation, the pair who were at the scene reporting on Ellie’s trial go through the evidence, witnesses and all digital footprint to understand the story as a whole – and possibly uncover some secrets buried within…
An unmissable podcast for anyone interested in how misinformation campaigns operate among us in the digital and the offline world, as well as for anyone after a gripping story that has real life lessons for all of us to take away.
