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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annie lab
@HKU Journalism | IFCN Signatory
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: 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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False: These photos are manipulated to show Hong Kong stars holding banners in support of Xinjiang cotton
All images in the collage were taken in 2016 after a fire killed two firefighters in Ngau Tau Kok in Hong Kong as part of a social media campaign to show support for local firefighters.
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False: This picture does not show Chinese soldiers helping Myanmar’s military ‘destroy’ the internet
The photo shows PLA Navy soldiers. It was taken in Dec. 2017 during combat drills in the East China Sea. It has nothing to do with the current status of the internet shutdown in Myanmar.
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False: This photo of alleged Myanmar ‘tank woman’ is digitally manipulated
The image is a composite of two unrelated photos taken at different times and locations.
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False: DOJ did not argue National Security Law has no presumption of innocence
In the hearing on Jimmy Lai’s bail, the prosecutor reportedly argued the principle of granting bail under the national security law should be different.
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False: Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg was not prosecuted for bribery related to the US election
Mark Zuckerberg did donate a total of $400 million to Center for Tech and Civic Life (CTCL), but he was not prosecuted for any offense.
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False: This photo does not show Trump shedding a tear after the US elections
The image has been altered from an old news photo. In the original picture, Trump is not crying. His right eye is not red.
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False: Cathay Pacific did not say the company will slash 5,300 jobs because of the 2019 HK airport protest
Restructuring is due to the pandemic crisis. Many major airlines in the region are also restructuring their operations.
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False: This video does not show mail-in votes for Trump being dumped into a landfill
This video was first posted in 2016. It shows packs of expired chicken being thrown out.
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False: This video does not show Uyghur children “being sold” by Chinese traffickers
This video has been manipulated. The audio is a truncated version of a Douyin video featuring two men bargaining over products being sold on the street, which has been added to an unrelated video of a young child model.
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False: This photo does not show 12 arrested Hong Kongers being led into a courthouse in Shenzhen
The image shows seven defendants charged with drug-related crimes walking into the courthouse of Taihe County, Anhui province.
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False: The video showing an anti-Trump banner hanging on Trump Tower in Chicago was doctored
A video showing a banner with the message “MURDERED 200,000 AMERICANS” hanging on Trump Tower posted on a Facebook page in September 2020 was doctored.
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False: Hospital Authority did not allocate HK$3 billion to subsidize the medical fees of Hong Kongers living in Guangdong
The proposed amount is $103 million. It is for the Food and Health Bureau, not Hospital Authority.
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False: This photo of Joe Biden appearing to sniff Kamala Harris’s hair is digitally manipulated
The image of Biden was taken five years ago while the image of Harris is from 2019.
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False: Chris Patten did not ask for Hong Kong’s “return” to British rule in the Hague
Chris Patten has never said he would go to the Hague or demand that the U.K. reclaim Hong Kong.
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False: Gargling with salt water or drinking Pu’er tea won’t prevent COVID-19 infection
At the moment there is no known substance that can kill the novel coronavirus in the human body.
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False: Microbiologist Yuen Kwok-yung did not comment on holding Legco election during COVID-19’s third wave
The claim in the popular Facebook post is groundless. Yuen has never discussed upcoming election while Hong Kong is going through the third was of COVID-19.
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False: Image of flooded dormitory room is old and digitally manipulated
The objects in the water appear to have been digitally added as many of them are identical duplicates.
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False: Reposting ‘legal statements’ does not exempt users from Facebook’s Terms of Service
This is a recurring chain letter hoax that has been debunked by several fact-checking organizations.
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False: Local media did not report UK government helped suspected protester flee Hong Kong
The claim is false and the image appears to be manipulated.
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False: Video depicting bus passengers screaming in terror is manipulated
The audio track of panic-struck passenger voices was taken from a different video clip and added to this one.
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