Weekly Wrap: Misinformation Around Paris Olympics, False Claims On Bangladesh Crisis & More

Paris Olympics: Old Visuals Of Neeraj Chopra And Arshad Nadeem Shared Out Of Context

A couple of visuals have gone viral on social media, claiming to be from the men’s javelin throw final at the 2024 Paris Olympics on Thursday (August 8), where Arshad Nadeem’s record-breaking throw stunned 2020 Tokyo Olympic gold medallist Neeraj Chopra, becoming the first Pakistani to win an individual Olympic gold, while Chopra became the third Indian to win individual Olympic medals at two different Games. Newschecker found the visuals to be old and unrelated to the ongoing Olympics. Read more here.

Old Video Of US Artistic Swimming Team Performing To AR Rahman’s ‘Taal’ Shared As Paris Olympics

Several social media users shared a video claiming to show the US artistic swimming team performing its routine to the theme song from AR Rahman’s “Taal” at the ongoing 2024 Paris Olympics. Newschecker, however, found that the video is old and unrelated to the ongoing Olympics. Read more here.

Old Image Of Defaced Rabindranath Tagore Bust Linked To 2024 Bangladesh Protests

Multiple social media users shared an image claiming that the radicals vandalise the bust of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore, who wrote Bangladesh’s national anthem, amid the violent protests. Newschecker found the image is of a broken head from a Tagore sculpture made by students to protest against censorship, which was removed from a Dhaka university in February 2023. Read more here.

Viral Visual Showing Dire State Of ‘Hindu Child In Bangladesh’ Is Actually From Gaza

A photograph of a visibly bewildered and helpless child is being circulated on social media platforms amid widespread turmoil in Bangladesh, with users claiming it to show the plight of Hindus in the crisis hit country. Multiple others also shared a longer video of the same child in an identical state linking to the current situation in Bangladesh. Newschecker, however, found the claim to be untrue. Read more here.

Elephants Running To Safety Before Landslides Hit Wayanad? No, Viral Video Is Old

Several social media users, including verified handles, shared a video claiming to show a herd of elephants “running to safety” an hour before the landslides hit Wayanad district last week. Newschecker, however, found the video to be old, and unrelated to the recent disaster in Kerala. Read more here.