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Fake News of the Week : Think Twice before Sharing

Ayushi Mittal Ayushi Mittal Follow on X Send an email August 30, 2021
489 3 minutes read
fake news

Here are the 9 Fake news we came across this week.

Everyday we come across ample of misinformation and fake news, what we don’t realise is the damage they can do. Once the fake news is circulated, even busting it does not create the same impact or have the same reach that the piece of misinformation would have. When directed at particular sections of the society or organizations, to create certain narratives or an imagery, it is unstoppable.

1.    Fake news: Guwahati ‘puchka’ seller mixing water with urine is a Muslim.

Fact-checked: Some social media users identified the person as Khalil Bhai, but this is false. However, the accused was identified as 60-year-old Akrul Sahani who is not a Muslim.

2.    Fake news: A viral photo from ‘Amar Ujala’ quoting Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s younger brother saying, “He did not leave to become a monk, Narendra Modi was kicked out of house for stealing jewelry”.

Fact-checked: Prahlad Modi, the Prime Minister’s brother clarified to ABP in 2016 that he never gave such a statement and Amar Ujala’s editor has stated that the publication had never run any article with this headline.

3.    Fake news: A message was received by many customers saying, “Your bank account has been credited with Rs 267000 under Government Yojna.

Fact-checked: The message is fake and the government of India had never run any such scheme. Government is not associated with any such message. So, if you receive this message, beware of deceitful messages in the name of the Government of India.

4.    Fake news: An image of the road is circulated with the claim that this much-awaited ring road will connect 53 villages and 5 districts in Kashmir.

Fact-checked: The India Today busted this fake news. This image is of NICE (The Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprises Road) ring road in Bengaluru. The Srinagar ring road project is still at the land acquisition stage.

5.    Fake news: The image of senior leaders of Indian National Congress is being circulated widely. The banner in the image reads, “Bhartiya Rastriya Congress Chor Group Meeting”.

Fact-checked: The image is morphed and the original image is from CWC (Congress Working Committee) meeting held in 2019. The image was also shared by Dr Richa Rajpoot, social media head of Bhartiya Janta Yuwa Morcha.

6.    Fake news: E-commerce website Myntra created a controversial graphic content depicting Hindu Gods.

Fact-checked: The graphic was created by ScrollDroll in 2016, who took it down after drawing flak online and issued an apology.The graphic depicts a scene from Hindu epic Mahabharata, Draupadi’s ‘Vastraharan’. It shows Krishna shopping from Myntra, ‘an extra long saree’. With this post, #BoycottMyntra was trending on top with over 12000 tweets on August 23.

7.    Fake news: Afghanistan is the matter of concern for the whole world since the Taliban had captured the main city Kabul. A photo is getting viral on Twitter in which Afghan’s president Ashraf Ghani is embracing Talibani leader before fleeing the country.

Fact-checked: An old photo was shared with the false claim. The image was shared by National Herald, TV9 Bharatvarsh, and Janta Ka Reporter. Photo was dated back 1st March 2020.

8.    Fake news: An image purportedly showing TIME magazine cover is being shared that the magazine wrote “IMPEACHMENT” as the title of August edition. It features United States President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.

Read more:- Avani Lekhara, Bhavina Patel and others, Women in News Last Week

Fact-checked: The Quit Webqoof debunked the fake image. The viral image was altered. The cover of the magazine’s latest edition does not feature Biden and Harris.

9.    Fake news: A video from the twin blasts at the Kabul Airport on Thursday 26 August.

Fact-checked: These are old videos linked to Kabul Airport Blasts. The visuals could be traced back to 21st August. As per reports, it shows an airstrike by an Israeli warplane in the Gaza strip.

Both the visuals are old. The first one dates back to August 2015, the other one could be from August 16, 2015.

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Ayushi Mittal Ayushi Mittal Follow on X Send an email August 30, 2021
489 3 minutes read
Ayushi Mittal

Ayushi Mittal

In her journey to become a journalist, Ayushi can inculcate your tale through her news writings. You may find her with a mike in protests, rallies, or in museums. So what's your story?
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