My previous post about media responsibility has triggered a lot of discussion about what we see and hear, particularly from those with personal connections to Ukraine.
My point was to show that there are other sides to the story, and definitely not to side with a dictator nor the West. So, as an appendix to that post, here is Reuters Fact Check reports about some information being bandied about on social media about Ukraine.
Video Game Manipulation Presented as News Facts
Some reports and images are captioned incorrectly date from 8 years ago, some are from other conflicts, not Ukraine and some are even sourced from video games.
SCRUTINISE WHAT YOU READ
Reuters Fact Check
- Fact Check-CNN did not tweet that a journalist was killed in both Ukraine and Afghanistan, claims stem from imposter accounts
Social media users are sharing a fabricated story about a CNN journalist allegedly killed in Ukraine amid Russia’s recent invasion. The posts are claiming CNN shared a tweet about the man’s death amidst the ongoing crisis in Ukraine after sharing the same story during the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021. But no such stories were posted by the news outlet and the screenshotted tweets come from unverified Twitter accounts posing as CNN pages. 12:03pm EST
A photograph circulating online of an injured girl is from 2018 and was taken during the Syrian war, not Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as users claim. 11:52am EST
Photos and a video captured during the 2014 Maidan protests in Ukraine have been shared on social media in February 2022 to falsely claim they depict the invasion by Russia. 10:04am EST
A photo of two children watching Ukrainian soldiers roll past atop two tanks has been falsely linked to the 2022 invasion by Russia. However, Reuters has traced the photo back to 2016. 7:49am EST
A military simulation clip from the video game Arma 3 is being shared online alongside misleading captions linking the footage to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Feb 25 2022
A stock image described as showing a female Ukrainian soldier has been shared on social media, with users falsely claiming it is Olena Zelenska, the first lady of Ukraine. 10:52am EST
- Fact Check-Animation mis -captioned as if to show video of Ukrainian fighter jet shooting down Russian plane
A clip from the video game Digital Combat Simulator has been miscaptioned online, with social media users claiming it shows a Ukrainian fighter jet shooting down a Russian plane. Feb 25 2022
- Fact Check-Video of artillery fire near a tent dates back to at least 2019, doesn’t show Russian invasion of Ukraine
A clip of artillery fire from what looks like a military camp in low light is unrelated to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and dates to at least 2019, despite the clip being shared widely by social media users online. Feb 25 2022
A video shared online of a warehouse exploding was captured in Beirut in 2020, in an incident that killed more than 200 people. Contrary to claims being circulated, it does not show events from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Feb 25 2022
Then there was the Why Ukraine Matters Facebook post that went viral that listed more than 30 reasons in the world economy as to “why Ukraine matters., listing significant mineral and resources weath..
Why Ukraine Matters Viral Post
Snopes.com reported:
Much of the data included in the viral “why Ukraine matters” posts were true. Some of the items on the list had become outdated, but more recent numbers still showed that the country had a strong standing in various categories of reserves, production, and exports. However, we were unable to find figures to confirm a few of the claims, and a small number of them were flat-out false.
Snopes.com
Comments
I love comments from anyone but would dearly love this forum to be respectful of others’ opinions, even if you do not agree with them, so please bear that in mind if you are feeling especially emotional. If you are a troll or repeatedly rude, your comment will, unfortunately, have to be trashed.
Something to Ponder About
Something to Ponder About 