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 are some of the most shared false claims of this week, of which none are legit.

World

Clip does not show U.S. fighter jets escorting Nancy Pelosi on trip to Taiwan

False claim: Social media users around the world have shared a 16-second video that shows a plane accompanied by several fighter jets and flying over a warship. “14 warplanes escort Nancy Pelosi on her trip to Taiwan, defying China,” reads the captions of the posts, in reference to the U.S.

House Speaker's recent visit to the island classified by Beijing as a “rebel province.”

Truth:

  • A reverse image search shows that the video has been circulating on the web at least since April 2021, when it was posted on YouTube by an account called Tinuod TV.
  • The video description reads: "JUST IN, US NAVY WARSHIP hovering over the WEST PHILS SEA.”
  • Pelosi landed in Taiwan on Tuesday night for a 12-hour visit, amidst warnings and threats from China, which branded the trip a “complete farce.”
  • In response to what it considered a “provocative action,” China began on Thursday a series of military exercises near Taiwan.

USA

Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene did not quote Hitler on Christianity

False claim: Social media users in the United States have shared the claim that Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene allegedly quoted last July 23 a statement from Nazi Germany dictator Adolf Hitler when speaking about Christianity.

“We do not tolerate anyone in our ranks who attacks the ideas of Christianity. Our movement is Christian,” the politician allegedly said.

Truth:

  • While the quote in the social media posts does indeed represent an authentic speech by Hitler, made in the German city of Passau on October 27, 1928 there is no record that Greene has repeated it recently.
  • In a statement to Reuters, Greene's spokesman Nick Dyer called the claims on social media “absolutely fake.”
  • On July 23, 2022 while attending an event at Turning Point USA's Student Action Summit (SAS), Greene told the audience – and later in an interview with The Next News Network – that she describes herself as a “Christian nationalist.”

Europe

Opinion poll did not show that 11 million Germans would fight for Russia against NATO

False claim: Social media users in Europe have shared the claim that a public opinion poll reportedly showed that 11 million Germans would be willing to “fight for Putin and Russia against NATO in case of war.”

Truth:

  • Contrary to what the posts shared on social media claim, there is no record in the German press of a poll showing that 11 million Germans would be willing to fight for Russia against NATO.
  • On the other hand, a poll published on March 3, 2022 by the German public broadcaster Ard showed that 83% of respondents agreed with the claim that “NATO is important for ensuring peace in Europe.”
  • In this same poll, only 6% of respondents rated Russia as a reliable partner for Germany.

Africa

Kenyan presidential candidate Raila Odinga did not vow to end Christianity in the country

False claim: Social media users in Kenya have shared a video of the presidential candidate Raila Odinga addressing the Muslim community in the capital Nairobi, alongside the claim that he allegedly promised during his speech to “end Christianity” in the country.

Truth:

  • A reverse image search shows that a full version of Odinga's speech was originally published on July 25, 2022 on the YouTube channel of Citizen TV Kenya.
  • During the nearly 7 minutes long clip, Odinga can be heard saying in Swahili: “There is a colonial ideology in Kenya that elevated Christianity above all other religions. This ideology still exists. My government will end that. The constitution of Kenya says that Kenya is a secular society and is a God-fearing nation and we must respect all religions, so we have said that we will respect all religions.”
  • One of the four candidates taking part in the upcoming presidential election on August 9, Odinga, a 77-year-old veteran opposition leader, has run unsuccessfully for the Kenyan presidency on four other occasions, contesting the results of the last three elections.

Brazil

WHO has not estimated that vaccines will reduce world population by 15%

False claim: Social media users in Brazil have shared an article claiming that the WHO (World Health Organization) has estimated that vaccines will reduce the world population by 15%.

Truth:

  • In a statement to the Brazilian fact-checking agency Aos Fatos, the WHO said it has never estimated that vaccines would reduce the world population by 15%.
  • In June, 2022 the organization stated that the current approved Covid-19 vaccines provide high levels of protection against severe disease and death for all Coronavirus variants.
  • The article posted on social media uses as its main source the financial analyst David Martin, famous on the web for spreading conspiracy theories and misinformation about vaccines.

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