What links the manager of Fleetwood Town, Donald Trump and Jeremy Corbyn? 'Fake news.'

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All three have used the term to avoid a difficult question or to try to shut down stories they don't like. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn used it against the BBC in February when asked about rumours of him stepping down, Uwe Rösler resorted to it in March to dismiss speculation he could be the next Norwich City manager – and Donald Trump? Well, he falls back on it regularly when a story puts him on the ropes.

It is far easier to accuse a journalist or news outlet of peddling 'fake news' than actually answer any questions. It shuts down all difficult conversations. And that is why we all need to stop using the term. The cry of 'fake news' is the last resort of those under media pressure. For 'fake news', read uncomfortable truths, read stories we didn't want you to find out about.

The trouble is searches for 'fake news' on Google have exploded since November. Journalists are partially to blame, of course, using the phrase in stories and loving a headline where someone accuses someone else of 'fake news'. Before, we would have read about someone 'denying a report' or 'dismissing a rumour' instead.

Manipulation of facts is as old as civilisation. What is worrying is there's a new, convenient term to hide behind.

%image(14780712, type="article-full", alt="Fleetwood Town manager Uwe Rosler. Photo: Richard Sellers/PA Wire")

So here's a fact for you. Us journalists produce 'fake news' one day a year – and enjoy it (and hope you do too) – on April 1.

But 'fake news' has taken the fun out of our April Fool's tradition too. Some newspapers didn't publish their spoof stories this year amid fears they would be accused of spreading 'fake news'. Thanks for ruining that, Donald.

Outside of April 1 there is no 'fake news'. There are inaccurate stories, there is misinformation, there are mistakes in newspapers, but stories are not 'fake'.

So how do we put 'fake news' back in its bottle? If you're in power, you can put pressure on social media sites to stop publishing stories which aren't true. If you're rich, you can, like the founder of eBay, donate $100m to help support investigative journalism. But if you're the other 99.9pc, you can stop using the term – and beware of anyone who does.