Category Media formats

How a video game has been used to create fake news about the Ukraine war – Truth or Fake

Since February, several Facebook and Twitter accounts versed in disinformation have been regularly sharing impressive videos purporting to show the war in Ukraine. But these viral images actually come from a video game called Arma 3. How can you spot these realistic spoofs that have even fooled international media? In this episode, the Truth or Fake team asks Pavel KÅiÅ¾ka, representative of Bohemia Interactive, the company that developed Arma 3.

Posts mischaracterize photo of BBC journalist during attack in Ukraine

Screenshots of a BBC news report shared on social media purport to show a journalist exaggerating the danger of a Russian attack on Irpin, Ukraine. This is misleading; the reporter has refuted the claim, and the posts ignore the shelling that took place in the area where the footage was filmed.

October 13, 2022
Fact checks / debunkings Images Media formats Media taken out of context Methods Misconceptions Resources Ukraine

Your guide to geolocating photos and videos posted online

Determining whether a scene actually took place where a social media user said it did - also known as geolocation - has become a major part of verifying social media posts. In this article, we take a look at some essential geolocation tools and walk you through a few case studies from the FRANCE 24 Observers team.

How to investigate a Twitter account or suspicious tweets

There are about 200 million people who use Twitter on a daily basis, making it an important site for news and information. But this social network is also a prime source of disinformation, from fake accounts to tweets taken out of context. The FRANCE 24 Observers team takes a look at some good habits to avoid falling into these Twitter traps.

FRANCE 24 Observers’ guide to verifying images

Since 2018, the FRANCE 24 Observers team has been sharing tips for helping you to verify images that circulate online yourself. In this guide, we'll explain how to avoid falling into online traps - whether they involve photos or videos taken out of context or ones that have been actually doctored. We'll keep updating this guide, to keep you up to date on verification tools available for public use.

Video from 2018 used in misleading post claiming Russian president recently arrived in South Africa

With Eastern Europe in turmoil following the invasion of Ukraine, a Facebook post shared hundreds of times claims Russian President Vladimir Putin is 'in South Africa'. The post includes a video broadcast showing Putin arriving in the country for alliance talks. However, this is misleading: the video was filmed in July 2018 ahead of the 10th summit of the BRICS group, which was hosted by South Africa.

Video dates back to 2017 post about Estonian railway repairs, unrelated to EU sanctioning Russia

A video of a railway track being removed has been viewed hundreds of thousands of times after it circulated in posts that claim it shows Lithuania cutting off transit with a Russian exclave after the EU sanctioned certain goods in response to Russia's invasion of neighbouring Ukraine in 2022. Although Lithuania did follow the EU sanctions in blocking certain goods to Kaliningrad, the video has been shared in a false context. It was uploaded in a 2017 post about railway repairs in Estonia, years before Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Keyword searches found no official reports about Lithuania removing the railway track.

Footage shows Polish flag at German band’s rock concert, not Indonesian flag

Two videos have been viewed over a million times in social media posts that claim they show an Indonesian flag flown during a concert by German rock band Scorpions after Indonesian President Joko Widodo visited Ukraine and Russia to urge peace talks in late June 2022. The claim is false; the videos were taken during a Scorpions concert in Poland on May 28, 2022. News reports say the Polish and Ukrainian flags had been flown at the concert, not the Indonesian flag.

This visual effects video does not show ‘Russia’s vacuum bomb attack in Ukraine’

A video has been viewed tens of thousands of times in multiple social media posts that claim it shows Russia attacking Ukraine with a vacuum bomb in 2022. The claim, however, is false. Although Russia has been accused of using such weapons in Ukraine, the video in fact is a digital creation of a visual effects artist.

July 6, 2022
Escalation / WWIII Fact checks / debunkings Media formats Misconceptions Narratives Resources Russia Ukraine Video War crimes

Video game clip shared as genuine footage of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

Footage that appears to show helicopters obliterated by missiles has racked up tens of thousands of views in social media posts that claim it shows combat between Russian and Ukrainian forces. While some social media users appeared to believe the clip was genuine, it was taken from war video game series Arma.

June 7, 2022
Fact checks / debunkings Media formats Media taken out of context Methods Misconceptions Resources Russia Ukraine Video