Content has been published claiming to present the results of an exit poll on support for political entities in Kosovo, on the day of the parliamentary elections (Sunday, June 7) until 10:00.
Content claiming to be a measurement published by an organization called "Ipsos" was posted on Facebook pages with the names "Kosovo Report”And“Today's Hasi".
What's wrong with this content?
This content was published prematurely, violating the law that prohibits the distribution of exit poll results during election day, and in addition, it is not based on confirmed credible sources.
What are exit polls?
Exit polls are surveys conducted by interviewing voters immediately after they leave the polling station. To predict the outcome of an election in a given district, a sample of smaller electoral units (such as polling stations) is selected, and at least one interviewer is assigned to each selected polling station. The interviewer follows a predetermined system (e.g., every third or fifth voter) and gives the voter a questionnaire to complete himself, while maintaining privacy and confidentiality (see here).
Law in Kosovo
According to Article 88 of The Law on General Elections, polling stations open at 7:00 AM and close at 19:00 PM.
Article 52 of this law, paragraph 2, on the Prohibition of Media Involvement, stipulates that no publication or broadcast of the results of public opinion research related to the election campaign, including turnout, shall be made in Kosovo during the period beginning twenty-four (24) hours before the official closing of polling stations and until the conclusion of the electoral process.
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The publication of an exit poll was announced by "Klan Kosova" television after the closing of the polling stations (see here).
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Hibrid.info has also researched the name of the organization that is claimed to have conducted this measurement. Ipsos is one of the world's largest companies for market research, public opinion polling and consumer analysis (see hereHowever, after researching this company's website, no publication related to Kosovo was found (see here).
Analyze:
Content that claims to present an exit poll result is not credible.
The manipulated exit poll, which represents the prediction for the outcome of the June 7 parliamentary elections, was published before the closing of polling stations, violating the law.
Meanwhile, the company that allegedly conducted the measurement has no data confirming the conduct of this exit poll.
Therefore, based on its work methodology, hibrid.info assesses this content as "Fake News".
Reasoning:
The “Fake News” rating is given to informational content that is entirely fabricated or that contains factually incorrect claims or information. Content that is rated as fake news can be defined as having been created and distributed with the intent to misinform the public, i.e., to present a claim that is completely false as fact.