LONDON: Heard the one about the Clinton Foundation buying $137 million worth of illegal arms? Or the Democratic candidate’s $200 million mansion in the Maldives, or how a fifth of her campaign was funded by ‘terrorists’? And what about the Pope’s public endorsement of Donald Trump…?
There’s every chance you have heard these stories — all of which are distinctly false — given that they have attracted many millions of readers online.
But while they may sound like jokes, these hoax online articles are anything but funny.
In the fallout of Trump’s surprise election win, many are pointing the finger at services like Facebook and Google for their role in helping spread "fake news" stories — and the very real impact that may have had on the US election.
As one New York magazine article put it bluntly: “Donald Trump Won Because of Facebook”. The argument is that the likes of Facebook — along with less popular social platforms — allowed people to share fake news articles widely, allowing completely fabricated reports to appear on people’s timelines with a prominence similar to perfectly legitimate news stories.
Even the outgoing President Barack Obama has criticized how “crazy conspiracy theorizing” is spread on social networks like Facebook.
Google also came under fire, with some questioning how its algorithms came to favor some false news stories. As reported by Mediaite, a search for “final election vote count 2016” earlier this month brought up a news story from a site called 70News — which falsely claimed that Trump was ahead of Hillary Clinton in the "popular vote".
It is easy to see how fake news could help influence public opinion, especially in such a divisive election campaign as that seen recently in the US.
And Google and Facebook are taking action amid mounting criticism over the impact of fake news and the vast power they wield as global information distributors.
“The goal of Search is to provide the most relevant and useful results for our users. In this case we clearly didn’t get it right, but we are continually working to improve our algorithms,” a Google spokesperson told Arab News.
“We have updated our publisher policies and now prohibit Google ads from being placed on misrepresentative content, just as we disallow misrepresentation in our ads policies. Moving forward, we will restrict ad serving on pages that misrepresent, misstate, or conceal information about the publisher, the publisher’s content, or the primary purpose of the web property.”
Facebook is also reported to have updated its terms and conditions to specifically clarify its policy on fake news.
“We take misinformation seriously,” a Facebook spokesperson said. “Our goal is to connect people with the stories they find most meaningful, and we know people want accurate information. We’ve been working on this problem for a long time and we take this responsibility seriously. We’ve made significant progress, but there is more work to be done.”
There is no denying that fake news is prevalent online. Some sites have less-than-obvious declarations they are "satire" or "fantasy" news sites; the more shady services make elaborate efforts in trying to pass themselves off as legitimate news sources.
And there is no denying that many millions of people get exposed to such fake news stories through platforms such as Facebook and Google.
But it’s less certain how much blame such online services should carry for this.
As the Facebook spokesperson said: “While Facebook played a part in this election, it was just one of many ways people received their information — and was one of the many ways people connected with their leaders, engaged in the political process and shared their views.”
Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s CEO, himself earlier this month pledged to do more to tackle hoax stories — while insisting that the spread of fake news on the social network did not impact the result of the US presidential election.
“Of all the content on Facebook, more than 99 percent of what people see is authentic. Only a very small amount is fake news and hoaxes. The hoaxes that do exist are not limited to one partisan view, or even to politics. Overall, this makes it extremely unlikely hoaxes changed the outcome of this election in one direction or the other,” Zuckerberg wrote on his Facebook page.
“That said, we don’t want any hoaxes on Facebook. Our goal is to show people the content they will find most meaningful, and people want accurate news. We have already launched work enabling our community to flag hoaxes and fake news, and there is more we can do here. We have made progress, and we will continue to work on this to improve further.”
Harris Breslow, an associate professor in the Department of Mass Communication at the American University of Sharjah, said that the extent of blame that can be leveled against sites like Facebook was “a tricky question”.
“On the one hand Facebook and other platforms are not responsible for generating the content. On the other hand, these platforms are responsible for its distribution,” Breslow told Arab News.
“Ultimately Facebook and other platforms are going to have to do something far more proactive concerning false news as this problem gains more understanding and more widespread knowledge amongst their user bases.”
But this is easier said than done, Prof. Breslow points out. For starters, it may not even be possible for social media websites to analyze every piece of information they host. And if such sites respond to specific complaints, they run the risk of being “perceived as biased or partisan”.
What is clear, however, is that fake news is on the rise in what has been coined the “post-truth” era.
“It preceded the Trump phenomenon by a couple of years. It is most pronounced in the US and amongst Americans,” Breslow said. “There was also a great deal of fake news associated with the Brexit campaign — in this case the fake news tended to be on the side or in the service of the exit argument at the expense of the stay argument.”
Fake news is however less of an issue in the Arab world, the academic noted, because of the strong government enforcement and laws governing what is posted online.
But its global spread speaks volumes — and has grave repercussions for the dominance of the “mainstream” media, Breslow added.
“The popularity of false news and the post-truth era confirms what many social media scholars and scholars of new media have been saying for some time: The era of the mass media channel and the mass media audience is over,” he said.
‘Fake news’ on Facebook: Did it swing the US election?
‘Fake news’ on Facebook: Did it swing the US election?
Saudi who swapped ejection seats for tech reviews — and topped KSA charts
- In an exclusive interview with Arab News, the host of ‘2You’ and ‘Up To Date KSA’ talks about digital wellness, AI’s future, and his plans to fill the gap in Arabic tech content
- Top Arab content creator in Saudi Arabia’s 2025 top 10 most-viewed YouTube channels describes milestone as ‘shockingly’ positive
LONDON: Speaking to Faisal Al-Saif, a self-described tech lover, one of the least likely things you expect to hear is advice on disconnecting from technology.
Yet the idea of a “tech diet” — more commonly known as digital wellbeing — takes on added weight when it comes from someone whose work revolves around gadgets and who relies on social media as their primary platform.
Beyond this seemingly analytical, Web 1.0-style perspective, Al-Saif draws on more than two decades of experience as a tech expert — or, in today’s terms, a content creator.
“I’m an early believer that technology is here to connect us more, to make the world even smaller than what it is, and make us just more active, more productive, and have more time for our religion, for our families and for our actual lives,” Al-Saif told Arab News.
Al-Saif trained as an aircraft engineer at BAE Systems, where he specialized in ejection seats for Royal Saudi Air Force jets, before entering broadcasting in 2004, hosting and producing KSA2’s English-language “2You” and, later, the technology show “Up To Date KSA.”
In 2009, he pivoted to YouTube — a platform with more limited reach and no monetization at the time — to help fill the gap in Arabic tech content.
“Back then, if you searched about a device or a system or a piece of information, the main language you would find the result in was English. So, I just started creating a channel and putting some good content in (both) Arabic and in English,” he said.
This approach required filming videos twice. Initially, videos in English drew more views, while Arabic lagged, but that shifted month by month as Arabic content gained traction.
“To put it in perspective, back then, it wasn’t a source of income — not a main, not a minor, not a partial.”
Today, Al-Saif’s channel delivers straightforward reviews that guide viewers on whether to buy or avoid products based on their needs, not brand pressure.
“I love creating content that gives value to the people. I love simplifying information. I love tech in a crazy way,” he said. “I like to see new tech, test it, be an early adopter of it. Tell people, ‘This is good because of this, and (that) could have been better with those implemented.’ Tell people to buy or not to buy based on their preferences, not based on companies and what they want to push.”
Creators typically earn through ad revenue, fan funding, product placement, and sponsorships, though Al-Saif distances himself from the “influencer” label.
“Part of it is that struggle we went through throughout the years, of trying to create valuable business propositions for everybody who works with us, being very fair and honest about what I present, and trying to help companies, just to help companies. Not seeking business.”
Earlier this month, almost two decades after starting his channel, Al-Saif was named top Arab content creator — and the only regional entry — in Saudi Arabia’s 2025 top 10 most-viewed YouTube channels, a milestone he described as “shocking” in a positive sense.
“Being on that top 10 list gives me a cool push after 16 years,” he said of his UTD Saudi channel, which has 8.92 million subscribers.
“(When) I go into a hospital, I find a lot of Saudis that know me. But also, I find some Filipino nurses coming to me (telling me), ‘I watch your videos.’ I like that kind of diversity (which) is only possible on YouTube and educational content.”
Al-Saif views YouTube as a modern visual library to help informed decisions. While social media shifts toward short-form videos, he believes the platform is resisting this trend.
“If it’s all short-term content, it’s us supporting that short attention span (which) is being developed with people.”
He champions long-form reviews, beginning with a brief story, then details, to encourage informed decisions. By contrast, he argued, three-second or ultra-short videos may be excellent at grabbing attention, but are largely useless for serious decisions, “unless (perhaps) it’s a cooking video.”
In 2012, after seeing an opening, Al-Saif left BAE Systems — “initially only for two years” — to launch Tech Pills Productions, helping companies such as Intel, Microsoft, and HP create content, a move that boosted his career. He later diversified into tech startups, though he shuns the “investor” label.
“I don’t see myself as an entrepreneur or an investor. I just see myself as a tech lover,” he said. “I try to push myself into diversifying the business and creating other pillars. So, I went into other types of investments, working and developing applications with different partners, and all of that went well. That part made me more comfortable creating content for the joy of it instead for the business side of it.”
In 2021, Al-Saif backed Karaz (Arabic for “cherries”), an EHR platform using IoT, AI, and real-time data for healthcare, originally a gamified app for diabetic children. “(I’m drawn to a project) if there’s a human touch,” he said. “It’s relating data to human change in a positive way that made me not hesitate and go for it.”
While AI pitches flood in, past flops have left him with a degree of “marketing resistance.”
“I find that AI does add value if you have those (proper) steps into getting into AGI (artificial general intelligence) and the later steps that will come. It’s the proper development. But the hype about relating everything to AI, that part, I’m definitely against,” he said.
AI has dominated headlines for three years, fueling an economic boom, and sparking debate over job losses and ethical risks. Al-Saif acknowledges the technology’s “endless opportunities,” but doubts the hype will last and that AI will ultimately drive the world. “They will find something else; either it’s diverted from AI or from another field in technology to create that marketing sense.”
Asked what people should be more aware of, he urged greater public education on AI’s dual nature.
“It’s a knife that you can cook with, or it’s a knife that can stab someone. There’s a seriousness about AI, and sadly, the world does not do enough regarding the sense of awareness,” he said.
Without greater understanding, unchecked AI could create generations shaped entirely by whatever information they are fed, regardless of truth, he said, adding that the technology already enables bad behavior excused as “AI-generated” and blurs fact and fiction, making regulations essential.
Saudi Arabia is leading responsibly through its Data and AI Authority, he said. “I think they’re going very well within multiple sides: the regulatory part, the governance side, as well as when it comes to investing heavily with the infrastructure and AI companies.”
Through the authority, the Kingdom has launched an ambitious plan to position itself at the forefront of AI technology. Al-Saif has contributed directly and indirectly, including advising on public strategies such as the Riyadh Charter on AI Ethics in the Islamic World.
“It’s a very interesting place to be (at a) very interesting time. I’ve sat with the Crown Prince (Mohammed bin Salman). He talked about AI, his vision, and how AI will create this next wave of businesses and next wave of economy.”
Asked whether our society is obsessed with technological progress, Al-Saif replies that “we are adopting (technologies) for what we need,” but adds that limits, such as Australia’s recent social media ban for youth, are needed. “But the thing is, they don’t ban stuff in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. They try to create a system.”
At home, he supervises his children’s screen time or watches content together. “YouTube is still, I find, the safest platform (out) there because of its nature of long videos and vlogs. It is much more mature than any other platform when it comes to how to censor, how to control, how to do things.”
However, he agreed that younger generations, as tech natives, perceive tech interaction differently, specifically when it comes to privacy.
“Privacy is kind of a stretchy thing. I define privacy different than my kids when they grow up, and that made me think of privacy different. It’s not that we’re letting go of information. It’s the environment that we live in that creates that sense of privacy.”
Al-Saif believes privacy has already been reshaped — not as a value we hold dear, but as an illusion where true personal boundaries have been eroded. What remains is a mere reflection of our actions online, not tied to our names, but reduced to anonymous data points or numbers in the digital ether.
For Al-Saif, part of the answer lies in the power of disconnection, an approach that he has strongly advocated.
“I give myself an hour or two a day maximum (online) to know about certain other stuff. My advice for anybody who wants to live 12 hours of cool life is: Try to experience or to learn something unrelated to tech.”
Pointing to a beehive he keeps in the office, Al-Saif added: “There are other fields that I like to, let’s say, learn about. It’s a clear state of mind that you reach with it. And I just try to do as normal, natural things as possible; try to work with gadgets and appliances that don’t have batteries.”
