False: Image of white man with ‘Black Lives Matter’ flag standing on the back of two Black people is digitally manipulated
The “Black Lives Matter” flag is taken from another photo and was added to what appears to be an older tourist image.
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False
The claim is demonstrably false. The photo/video has been doctored. Stories investigate factual validity of the claim and/or the authenticity of photo/video.
False: This video does not show Chinese police ‘kidnapping’ a Uyghur girl in Xinjiang
It actually shows an officer trying to protect the girl from a bike coming at her. The video was taken in Suining, Sichuan, not in Xinjiang.
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False: This vulgar message targeting Biden in US stadium is digitally altered
The original message reads “Home of the 12th Man” in reference to a Texas A&M tradition.
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False: ‘Falling dust,’ mobile phones and haircut do not prove Chinese astronauts are not in space
An expert said dust particles may appear in space due to ambient air activity. Mobile phones can also work as internet access in space is made possible through satellite communication.
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False: Image of US Army general receiving a Huawei phone from a Chinese general is manipulated
The image is a composite of multiple pictures. Each person, the flags, and the gift box are all taken from different photos.
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False: This video does not show ‘disguised suicide’ in China; it shows a man falling off a building in Russia
The 26-year-old man was pushed from the sixth floor on Aug. 15, 2021.
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False: This video does not show a man vandalizing ‘vaccine passport verification’ machines
The video was taken in 2017. It shows an intoxicated man thrashing self check-in machines at the Incheon International Airport, according to a news report.
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False: China’s double-dose COVID-19 vaccine vial is neither ‘fake’ nor ‘of different grade’
The new vaccine package was officially approved by medical authorities, according to a doctor from the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention who spoke in a webinar in May.
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False: This photo does not show ‘Australian protester’ with rubber bullet wounds; it shows a man in Argentina in 2015
The photo shows a demonstrator in a labor dispute in Buenos Aires on Dec. 22, 2015, according to the Associated Press. It has nothing to do with the anti-vaccine mandate protests in Melbourne in September 2021.
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False: This headline has been altered. China did not claim the Communist Party fought against ‘99%’ of the invading Japanese army
The original article in the Nan Guo Morning Post (南国早报) puts it at 60 percent.
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Analysis: Social media posts about Afghanistan — From False to Verified
In this article, Annie Lab delves into three unverified social media content about Afghanistan in turmoil
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False: Photo of woman “leading a luxurious life in Afghanistan under US control” is old, showing a Pakistani businesswoman in Lahore
The woman is a Pakistani female entrepreneur, Aleena Raza. The photo was taken in 2014 in Lahore, Pakistan.
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False: 60 percent of hospitalized COVID-19 patients in the UK did not develop serious or critical conditions ‘due to vaccination’
The Chinese tweet with the false claim was posted after the British expert corrected his misspoken statistics. Similar claims in English were also debunked by fact-checking organizations before the post was made.
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False: Olympics medal table with China on top is neither official nor authentic
Misleading medal tables that show China with the most number of golds are doctored images.
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Investigation: A group of doctors spreading misleading claims about COVID-19 vaccines
Annie Lab looks into an anti-vaccine group that has frequently disseminated misinformation about COVID-19 since February.
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False: German scientist did not say vaccination caused the delta variant in a recent conference
Karl Lauterbach, a German epidemiologist and also a politician, did not make any statement that links inoculation to the origins of the delta variant in a COVID-19 conference on June 21.
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False: A whale and crocodiles in floodwaters digitally added; images not taken in China, either
The photos and videos of flooded cities were taken in Mexico and Russia. The animals added in post-production are old images.
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False: COVID-19 vaccines do not make you magnetic
Various social media posts suggest human bodies became magnetic following COVID-19 vaccination. Experts say that is simply impossible.
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False: No office property damaged or street blocked during the eviction of Hong Kong University Students’ Union
The false claim also featured two old photos taken in 2019 at the height of the Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill movement.
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False: The Hong Kong University Students’ Union Building has not been demolished
The building is still standing on campus and can be freely entered. No plan was announced to knock it down after the Union moves out of the building.
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False: Video of Chinese astronauts standing straight in space does not imply it is fake
Multiple news reports and videos show their legs are attached to foot restraints to keep them in upright position.
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False: These CT images of lungs do not link vaping disease to COVID-19
Ground-glass opacity is a common manifestation of lung injury. It does not imply any link between COVID-19 and vaping disease.
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False: India’s ‘Health Ministry spokesperson’ did not die of COVID-19 vaccination
Subramanian Swaminathan is the director of Infectious Diseases and Infection Control at Gleneagles Global Hospitals, not a ministry spokesperson. He appeared in multiple interviews after he was vaccinated. The claim appears to originate from a deliberate mistranslation.
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False: Japanese prime minister did not say India will get medals for not coming to the Olympics
The Chinese translation of Suga’s speech was fabricated. It has nothing to do with the upcoming Tokyo Olympics.
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False: This photo is altered. Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen did not kneel before US senators
The image was manipulated to add Tsai Ing-wen’s lower legs. A video from the same scene shows her talking to the US senators while standing.
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Analysis: None of the eight claims about Fauci’s emails revealing COVID-19 ‘secrets’ is accurate
A social media post claims Fauci’s emails show he had known lockdowns were unnecessary and that asymptomatic people could not spread COVID-19, but a review of the emails tells otherwise.
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False: This simulation video does not show Japan’s treated water from Fukushima ‘polluting half of the Pacific ocean in 57 days’
The video is nine years old and has nothing to do with Japan’s plan. The clip has also been cropped to make the covered area in the ocean appear bigger than in the original video. The speed of spreading is accelerated.
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False: This 2018 photo of China’s top diplomat Yang Jiechi used in media reports is manipulated
The image showing Chinese senior diplomat Yang Jiechi bowing to then U.S. State Secretary Mike Pompeo in a meeting in Beijing on Oct. 8, 2018 has been doctored. The original picture shows both diplomats facing the camera, standing up straight.
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False: Images of Greta Thunberg’s ‘weight gain’ are digitally manipulated
Multiple social media posts imply Swedish climate activist Thunberg has gained weight. However, they are digitally manipulated. Her face appears much smaller in the original photos.
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False: These images do not show Myanmar soldiers setting Chinese-owned factories ablaze
The photo showing a Myanmar soldier holding a Molotov cocktail is manipulated. The original image is about an anti-coup demonstration in the northwestern town of Kalay, Myanmar on March 2, which has nothing to do with the burning of Chinese-owned factories on March 14.
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