Authors
Vasudha noticed the growing problem of mis/disinformation online after studying New Media at ACJ in Chennai and became interested in separating facts from fiction. She is interested in learning how global issues affect individuals on a micro level. Before joining Newschecker’s English team, she was working with Latestly.
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
Claim
Activist Yogendra Yadav’s actual name is “Salim”, has been fooling people about his identity.
Fact
A clipped video from Yadav’s recent interview, where he narrates why he was initially named Salim, and how it was later changed to Yogendra, shared out of context.
Nearly a minute long video of activist Yogendra Yadav saying that he is known to his family and childhood friends as “Salim”, has surfaced on social media platforms, with many users accusing the activist of fooling people about his identity. The text overlay on the footage reads, “How Salim Became Yogendra Yadav.” Newschecker found that the video was clipped from a longer interview given by Yadav, and is being shared out of context.
Such tweets can be seen here, here, here and here.
Newschecker also received the video of our WhatsApp tipline (+91-9999499044) requesting to be fact checked.
Also Read: Edited Photo Of Vinesh Phogat, Sangeeta Phogat Smiling During Detention By Delhi Police Goes Viral
Fact Check/Verification
On a close analysis of the video, we noticed the watermark “Jist” on the top right corner of the viral footage.
Taking a clue, we conducted a keyword search for “Yogendra Yadav,” “Salim” and “Jist” on Google which lead us to a Facebook post by the news outlet dated May 22, 2023. The post carried a longer version of the viral footage with the caption, “There is always controversy regarding the name of Yogendra Yadav. Yogendra Yadav has told about the story and controversy behind his name Salim in this video.”
Also Read: Photo From Farmers’ Protest Shared as Delhi Police Trampling Olympic Medalist Sakshi Malik’s Face
Narrating the “story” behind his childhood name Salim, Yadav explained that his grandfather, Ram Singh, “a teacher and a warden at a hostel in Hisar”, was killed by a Muslim mob after he refused to hand over a few students to them. The mob had alleged that the students were involved in some wrongful activities in a mosque.
Yadav added that his father was deeply affected by the incident, and had decided to give his children Muslim names. Hence, he was named Salim. However, when his schooling started, he faced inconvenience because of the name following which he was renamed Yogendra.
Multiple news outlets have reported on this anecdote on how “Salim” became “Yogendra.”
Such reports can be seen here, here and here.
Also Read: Video Of Street Play In Kerala Shared To Claim Killing Of ‘Hindu RSS Worker By Muslims’ In Kerala
Conclusion
Hence, a clipped video from Yadav’s recent interview, where he narrates why he was initially named Salim, and how it was later changed to Yogendera, is being shared out of context
Result: Missing Context
Source
Facebook Post By @jist.india, Dated May 22, 2023
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Authors
Vasudha noticed the growing problem of mis/disinformation online after studying New Media at ACJ in Chennai and became interested in separating facts from fiction. She is interested in learning how global issues affect individuals on a micro level. Before joining Newschecker’s English team, she was working with Latestly.
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
