California governor, Gavin Newsom on Saturday launched a page on his campaign website to combat “misinformation and disinformation” being spread online about the ongoing wildfires in Southern California.
The governor said the site will “continue to update and provide valuable, fact-based information to the public around policies, budget allocations, personnel on the ground and more.”
The webpage is notably located on Newsom’s campaign website funded by Newsom for California, and not on an official government site.
Newsom and other state and local officials, notably including LA Mayor Karen Bass, have faced criticism by residents of preparedness and responsiveness to the devastating fires that have ravaged Los Angeles County since early last week.
They have also faced attacks from online critics, including President-elect Donald Trump.
“There is an astonishing amount of mis- and dis-information being spread online, much of it by so-called leaders and partisan media outlets who seek to divide this country for their own political gain. It breaks my heart that families in Los Angeles don’t just have to worry about the fires but also this malicious disinformation as well,” Newsom said.
Mayor Karen Bass: ‘I’m making sure we don’t leave any resource untapped. We are here to do the work and ensure the public knows the truth about what’s happening with these devastating fires, how their communities are being impacted, and how their government is working to protect and support them.”
Initial postings on the page aimed at several claims made by Trump about the state’s water management, as well as a Fox News report that claims Newsom cut $100 million from the state’s fire budget months before the latest wildfires broke out.
“A ridiculous lie. We have doubled the size of our firefighting army, built the world’s largest aerial firefighting fleet, and increased the forest management ten-fold since taking office. Time to serve these folks the facts.” Newsom posted on X in response to the report.
The page also refuted a claim by Trump that the governor refused to sign a “water restoration declaration” over concerns about an endangered Delta smelt fish.
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