The media, as a vanguard of credible information, has often been the very platforms on which misinformation and disinformation is peddled. Social media or digital platforms, however, have been identified as major channels for the spread of information disorder.
Media and journalists are not immune from falling for misinformation due to multiple factors including among others, collapsed traditional business models, the pressure to publish rapidly and the tendency to prioritize appealing narratives over complex facts. The media gets deceived because of resource challenges for newsrooms, that have left journalists with far less time for rigorous checks and balances.
A typical incident of media misinformation was around the recent Thomas Partey Canadian visa denial saga. Three media outlets, UTV, Modern Ghana and GhanaWeb published misinformation at different times on June 16, 2026; the day of a legal appeal against the entry ban on the Black Stars player.
Background
Thomas Partey was denied entry to Canada on June 12, 2026, casting doubt on his availability for Ghana’s first World Cup game in Toronto on June 17.
Canada’s decision on the former Arsenal midfielder was because of rape and sexual assault charges Partey was facing in the United Kingdom. In July 2025, the Metropolitan Police, formally charged Partey, he has since pleaded not guilty. Partey, who now plays for the Spanish club Villarreal, was subsequently charged with two new counts of rape in February 2026 and again pleaded not guilty.
The 32-year-old was allowed to enter the United States with the rest of Ghana’s squad on June 4, 2026 for the ongoing World Cup and has been in a training camp in Boston before the start of the World Cup.
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Ghana’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs criticized the visa denial describing it as a “high-handed and extremely unfair decision,” announcing that all necessary measures were being taken to secure an entry visa for the player.
This report dissects the misinformation that circulated on social media, especially by three media portals, each claiming Partey had been granted a visa ahead of Ghana’s first game when in fact, at the time, the hearing into his appeal against the denial was yet to start.
UTV host’s false breaking news
A presenter with Accra-based United Television (UTV), Abena Kyei Boakye, claimed on June 16, 2026; that Black Stars deputy captain Thomas Partey had been granted a Canadian visa ahead of Ghana’s game against Panama at the 2026 World Cup.
“This is a hot one, it is breaking news. Our very own Thomas Partey who we were talking about even this morning, whose issue with Canada denying him Visa, as we speak now, reports reaching us is that he has been granted a visa. So, he will join the team tomorrow for the game”, she said on UTV’s morning show, “Adekye Nsroma”.
Another UTV presenter, Adjoa Yeboah Adjei made the same claim in a video (Archived) she posted on her TikTok page. The same claim was shared by multiple social media accounts (here, here, here and here).
Notable among the accounts that shared the claim on X (formerly Twitter) was @THESTATENEWSS, whose post at the time of publishing this report had 397k views, 9.9K likes, 727 retweets and 171 comments.
Modern Ghana’s deleted story
Shortly after the UTV claim was circulated, GhanaFact’s checks for any reporting on the claim that Partey has been granted bail, led to a story by Modern Ghana with the headline: “2026 World Cup: Thomas Partey granted Canadian visa after court intervention.”
When GhanaFact tried accessing the story, we found that the story had been deleted.
GhanaWeb publishes visa granted report
GhanaWeb, late June 16, when the final ruling of the court was being awaited; reported that Partey had been granted a Canadian visa. Their headline read: “BREAKING: Thomas Partey granted Canada visa to participate in World Cup.
The Facts
The Ghana Football Association (GFA) on Tuesday June 16, 2026 appealed Canada’s decision to refuse Thomas Partey entry into the country. A Canadian federal court heard the appeal on Tuesday, June 16, just a day before Ghana faced Panama in Toronto.
Partey was listed as the appellant with the Canadian Minister of Citizenship and Immigration (MCI) as the respondent.
The court, after an extensive hearing, dismissed the emergency application by Partey’s lawyers. In a ruling by Justice Lafrenière, the court said it found “no serious issue” with the decision by Canadian immigration authorities to deny Partey entry.
GhanaFact’s checks showed that local and international media outlets published reports on the court’s decision. (here, here, here and here)
From the above, at the time the UTV presenter announced on her morning show that Partey had been given a Canadian visa, and when Modern Ghana and GhanaWeb ran stories on the same, the court had yet to deliver a ruling on the appeal hence it was impracticable.
Researched by Samuel Nii Adjetey and Alfa Shaban
