The House of Commons will&nbsp;investigate&nbsp;the sale of&nbsp;Wembley&nbsp;Stadium&nbsp;by the English Football Association (FA) in a one-off evidence session on July 18, the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport&nbsp;Committee (DCMS) said on Friday.

The FA confirmed last week that it is negotiating to sell the national soccer&nbsp;stadium&nbsp;to US&nbsp;billionaire Shahid Khan and British media said the deal could be worth up to 1 billion pounds ($1.36 billion).

The money from the sale of&nbsp;Wembley&nbsp;would allow the governing body to reinvest in the English game's grassroots, which includes approximately 1,500 new pitches, improved drainage systems and floodlighting.

The government has&nbsp;offered provisional support to the proposed deal but the DCMS committee said there should be public scrutiny over how the proceeds of the sale could benefit the long-term future of the sport.

"Wembley&nbsp;is the home of English football, built in part using public money," Damian Collins, chairman of the DCMS committee, said in a statement.

"There should be some public scrutiny of any decision to sell the&nbsp;stadium&nbsp;and how proceeds from this could be invested to benefit the long-term future of the game.

"The Committee is interested in understanding the details of the FA's proposals and receiving evidence from people who may hold alternative views."

The invited witnesses include sports minister Tracey Crouch as well as representatives from the FA and Sport&nbsp;England.

The money from the sale of Wembley would allow the governing body to reinvest in the English game's grassroots, which includes approximately 1,500 new pitches, improved drainage systems and floodlighting

The House of Commons will investigate the sale of Wembley Stadium by the English Football Association (FA) in a one-off evidence session on July 18, the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee (DCMS) said on Friday. The FA confirmed last week that it is negotiating to sell the national soccer stadium to US billionaire Shahid Khan and British media said the deal could be worth up to 1 billion pounds ($1.36 billion). The money from the sale of Wembley would allow the governing body to reinvest in the English game's grassroots, which includes approximately 1,500 new pitches, improved drainage systems and floodlighting. The government has offered provisional support to the proposed deal but the DCMS committee said there should be public scrutiny over how the proceeds of the sale could benefit the long-term future of the sport. "Wembley is the home of English football, built in part using public money," Damian Collins, chairman of the DCMS committee, said in a statement. "There should be some public scrutiny of any decision to sell the stadium and how proceeds from this could be invested to benefit the long-term future of the game. "The Committee is interested in understanding the details of the FA's proposals and receiving evidence from people who may hold alternative views." The invited witnesses include sports minister Tracey Crouch as well as representatives from the FA and Sport England.

MPs to investigate Wembley stadium offer

British parliamentarians said they were prepared to issue formal summons for Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg to appear before them and answer questions over a data scandal which has engulfed the technology giant.

The social network has faced questions on both sides of the Atlantic over how millions of users' details got into the hands of political consultancy Cambridge Analytica, and over its wider handling of personal data.

Zuckerberg previously declined to come in person to answer questions from British lawmakers, instead sending Facebook's Chief Technology Officer Mike Schroepfer to face a four-hour grilling last month. Schroepfer apologised for errors made by the firm and vowed to do more to improve transparency.

But the head of parliament's Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee Damian Collins said on Tuesday he still wanted Zuckerberg to appear before lawmakers, ideally by May 24, and listed 39 questions or points which remained unanswered.

"While Mr Zuckerberg does not normally come under the jurisdiction of the UK parliament, he will do so the next time he enters the country," Collins wrote in a letter.

"We hope that he will respond positively to our request, but if not the Committee will resolve to issue a formal summons for him to appear when he is next in the UK."

Zuckerberg previously declined to come in person to answer questions from British lawmakers, instead sending Facebook's Chief Technology Officer Mike Schroepfer to face a four-hour grilling last month

British parliamentarians said they were prepared to issue formal summons for Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg to appear before them and answer questions over a data scandal which has engulfed the technology giant. The social network has faced questions on both sides of the Atlantic over how millions of users' details got into the hands of political consultancy Cambridge Analytica, and over its wider handling of personal data. Zuckerberg previously declined to come in person to answer questions from British lawmakers, instead sending Facebook's Chief Technology Officer Mike Schroepfer to face a four-hour grilling last month. Schroepfer apologised for errors made by the firm and vowed to do more to improve transparency. But the head of parliament's Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee Damian Collins said on Tuesday he still wanted Zuckerberg to appear before lawmakers, ideally by May 24, and listed 39 questions or points which remained unanswered. "While Mr Zuckerberg does not normally come under the jurisdiction of the UK parliament, he will do so the next time he enters the country," Collins wrote in a letter. "We hope that he will respond positively to our request, but if not the Committee will resolve to issue a formal summons for him to appear when he is next in the UK."

UK lawmakers prepared to summon Facebook boss Zuckerberg over data scandal

The rise of fake news has been a hot topic in Britain this year, with the lawmaker leading a probe into the phenomenon warning it was &quot;a threat to democracy&quot;.

As-well as the inquiry, British journalism schools have begun to adapt their teaching while national broadcaster the BBC has issued prevention guidelines for children in an attempt to reverse the trend.

Damian Collins, head of the parliamentary probe, told AFP that fake news undermined trust in the media in general, with the explosion of social media making political issues particularly sensitive.

Fake news represents &quot;a threat to democracy...if people are deliberately using it on social media platforms to spread misinformation around an election&quot;, he said.

The panel is considering whether fake news spreaders could be blocked or closed down, or genuine news outlets given a special verification mark.

Collins urged tech companies to help tackle the problem on social media platforms as they had done in combating piracy, illegal content sharing, cyber-bullying and hate speech.

But the tech giants had only moved &quot;in response to pressure, and reluctantly&quot;, the MP warned.The impact on those too young to vote is also causing concern.

BBC television&#39;s &quot;Newsround&quot;, a news bulletin for children, explained fake news to youngsters in February.

The programme created &quot;think before you click&quot; clips informing youngsters how to spot false stories, using invented tales of yellow pandas, robot headteachers and UFOs.

Fake news is not a 21st-century phenomenon, but what is new is its scale, said James Rodgers, a senior lecturer in journalism at the City University of London.

&quot;Before, being published relied on getting into an established medium. It no longer does,&quot; said Rodgers, whose university runs some of Britain&#39;s most prestigious journalism courses.

The former BBC and Reuters journalist said three main factors seem to create the conditions for a fake news surge.

&quot;These spikes seem to occur at times of political uncertainty, armed conflict and new technology. We have all of those three at the moment,&quot; he told AFP.

Rodgers said that as people got wiser to the ways of social media, they would grow more discerning and that journalists would become more adept at utilising technology.In Britain, there is a fine tradition of humorous spoof news.

It reaches a crescendo on April 1, April Fools&#39; Day, when newspapers and broadcasters traditionally try to catch their audience out.

The pick of Saturday&#39;s crop included Prince Harry&#39;s quickie wedding in Las Vegas and a new fashion range launched by former finance minister George Osborne.

A Daily Express piece saying that the EU was to demand the recall of every British number plate following Brexit provoked anger amongst readers, with one commenter writing &quot;the EU can shove their dumb number plates where the sun don&#39;t shine.&quot;

A fake news producer explained that, as demonstrated by the Express report, the key to getting stories to go viral was to appeal to people&#39;s emotion.

The Southend News Network turns out topical satirical stories, often patently ludicrous, that nonetheless get shared worldwide -- and occasionally picked up by mainstream news outlets.

&quot;A successful fake news story will always appeal to people&#39;s angers and fears,&quot; said the SSN&#39;s chief reporter.

In his mid-30s, he works in the teaching industry and does not reveal his identity due to threats of violence from angry readers in his native Southend, east of London.

&quot;The EU referendum was my busiest-ever time. It was such a twitchy subject, people were just going with it,&quot; he told AFP. 
A story about then prime minister David Cameron telling Southend supermarket shoppers he would ignore the referendum result if Britain voted out was viewed more than 400,000 times.

&quot;People were getting outraged, saying, &#39;I knew he was going to do this!&#39;,&quot; the spoofer said.

&quot;They will literally read a headline and the first paragraph and share it without thinking.&quot;

However, he said there was a serious underlying message.

&quot;I&#39;m encouraging people to either take fake news at face value as entertainment, or teach people that fake news is something that should be analysed before sharing,&quot; he said.

&quot;Everyone who&#39;s against stupidity on the internet would appreciate what I do.&quot;

(AFP)

A panel is considering whether fake news spreaders could be blocked or genuine news outlets given a special verification mark

The rise of fake news has been a hot topic in Britain this year, with the lawmaker leading a probe into the phenomenon warning it was "a threat to democracy". As-well as the inquiry, British journalism schools have begun to adapt their teaching while national broadcaster the BBC has issued prevention guidelines for children in an attempt to reverse the trend. Damian Collins, head of the parliamentary probe, told AFP that fake news undermined trust in the media in general, with the explosion of social media making political issues particularly sensitive. Fake news represents "a threat to democracy...if people are deliberately using it on social media platforms to spread misinformation around an election", he said. The panel is considering whether fake news spreaders could be blocked or closed down, or genuine news outlets given a special verification mark. Collins urged tech companies to help tackle the problem on social media platforms as they had done in combating piracy, illegal content sharing, cyber-bullying and hate speech. But the tech giants had only moved "in response to pressure, and reluctantly", the MP warned.The impact on those too young to vote is also causing concern. BBC television's "Newsround", a news bulletin for children, explained fake news to youngsters in February. The programme created "think before you click" clips informing youngsters how to spot false stories, using invented tales of yellow pandas, robot headteachers and UFOs. Fake news is not a 21st-century phenomenon, but what is new is its scale, said James Rodgers, a senior lecturer in journalism at the City University of London. "Before, being published relied on getting into an established medium. It no longer does," said Rodgers, whose university runs some of Britain's most prestigious journalism courses. The former BBC and Reuters journalist said three main factors seem to create the conditions for a fake news surge. "These spikes seem to occur at times of political uncertainty, armed conflict and new technology. We have all of those three at the moment," he told AFP. Rodgers said that as people got wiser to the ways of social media, they would grow more discerning and that journalists would become more adept at utilising technology.In Britain, there is a fine tradition of humorous spoof news. It reaches a crescendo on April 1, April Fools' Day, when newspapers and broadcasters traditionally try to catch their audience out. The pick of Saturday's crop included Prince Harry's quickie wedding in Las Vegas and a new fashion range launched by former finance minister George Osborne. A Daily Express piece saying that the EU was to demand the recall of every British number plate following Brexit provoked anger amongst readers, with one commenter writing "the EU can shove their dumb number plates where the sun don't shine." A fake news producer explained that, as demonstrated by the Express report, the key to getting stories to go viral was to appeal to people's emotion. The Southend News Network turns out topical satirical stories, often patently ludicrous, that nonetheless get shared worldwide -- and occasionally picked up by mainstream news outlets. "A successful fake news story will always appeal to people's angers and fears," said the SSN's chief reporter. In his mid-30s, he works in the teaching industry and does not reveal his identity due to threats of violence from angry readers in his native Southend, east of London. "The EU referendum was my busiest-ever time. It was such a twitchy subject, people were just going with it," he told AFP. A story about then prime minister David Cameron telling Southend supermarket shoppers he would ignore the referendum result if Britain voted out was viewed more than 400,000 times. "People were getting outraged, saying, 'I knew he was going to do this!'," the spoofer said. "They will literally read a headline and the first paragraph and share it without thinking." However, he said there was a serious underlying message. "I'm encouraging people to either take fake news at face value as entertainment, or teach people that fake news is something that should be analysed before sharing," he said. "Everyone who's against stupidity on the internet would appreciate what I do." (AFP)

Britain attempts to burst the fake news bubble

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MPs to investigate Wembley stadium offer

UK lawmakers prepared to summon Facebook boss Zuckerberg over data scandal

Britain attempts to burst the fake news bubble