We are monitoring social media, national and international media, and fact-checking websites in order to share the fake news making the rounds each week. Don't be fooled!

The world of news is complex – and false stories and images are often widely shared on social media. Blasting News’s editorial team spots the most popular hoaxes and misleading information every week to help you discern truth from falsehood. Here is some of the most popular Fake News of the week from around the world.

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1. Hollywood actors are not supporting Russia against Ukraine

False News: Recently, a surge of pro-Kremlin bot accounts has surfaced on social media platforms, sharing videos featuring Hollywood celebrities. These videos falsely depict the celebrities criticizing Ukraine and its president, Volodymyr Zelensky.

Truth:

  • While the footage originates from genuine interviews, the audio has been altered and dubbed into French or German, falsely attributing statements to these actors that they never made.
  • According to a NewsGuard analysis, the orchestrator of this disinformation campaign is Doppelgänger, a Russian operation targeting European audiences to spread false information about Ukraine.
  • The disinformation campaign was identified by @antibot4navalny, an anonymous Twitter profile monitoring pro-Russia propaganda.

2. No, this is not real UFO footage but a video game

False News: A widely circulated online video depicts a UFO engaging a navy ship off the coast of California.

The clip emerged in April with captions suggesting it was an incident that occurred off the coast of California in 2019.

Truth:

  • The black and white video is fictional and comes from the game Arma 3, according to Reuters, which spoke with a spokesperson for Bohemia Interactive, the game's developer.
  • The game footage can be viewed on YouTube in a 2021 video.

3. Columbia University President’s fascist salute is satire

False News: A social media post shared a decontextualized image of Columbia University President Minouche Shafik performing the fascist salute, captioned: “Columbia University president accidentally gives Nazi sign at Congress hearing.”

Truth:

  • On April 17th, Minouche Shafik was criticized by the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Education and the Workforce for failing to protect Jewish students at Columbia.
  • The same day, the Babylon Bee, which bills itself as “the world’s best satire site,” published doctored images of Shafik with the headline: “Oops: Columbia University President Accidentally Gives Nazi Salute When Being Sworn In For Congressional Testimony.”

4. Diddy image with Trump and Epstein is AI generated

False News: In April, an image featuring producer Sean “Diddy” Combs sitting on a sofa with Donald Trump, the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and several young women was shared on social media with the sarcastic caption: “Bible Study!”.

Truth:

  • Several experts consulted by USA Today confirmed that Diddy was added to an already AI-altered image.
  • The image featuring Trump and Epstein was first published online in 2023 and, according to several experts, was also AI-altered.
  • Even though Sean Combs has been photographed with Trump in the past, this image is not genuine. Combs is currently facing two lawsuits alleging that he solicited prostitutes and raped two minors 20 years ago.

5. The false story of the dangerous effects of microwaves is spreading in Italy

False News: A TikTok profile uploaded a video where the host claims that microwave ovens cause cancer, among other negative effects on our health.

Truth:

  • According to the American Cancer Society, the type of microwaves used by microwave ovens is safe. Microwave ovens heat food safely by energizing water molecules in the food so that these molecules vibrate faster, as a result, food is heated. The radiation levels of the food are not affected.
  • “The only non-ionizing radiation that can cause cancer is ultraviolet (UV) light. UV radiation has more energy than the radiation from microwaves. This higher energy can increase the risk of health issues like skin cancer,” concludes the article.
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