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
NOAA data does not show that “CO₂ warming is a hoax”
Fake claim: Social media users around the world have shared the claim that a graph published on the website of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) shows that the Earth has been cooling, not warming, for the past eight years, proving that global warming due to CO₂ emissions is a hoax. “Last 8 years...
global cooling... at a rate of 0.11°C/decade.... despite 450+ billion tons of emissions worth 14% of total manmade CO2 in the atmosphere. CO2 warming is a hoax,” reads one of the posts.
Truth:
- In a statement to Politifact, Howard Diamond, climate science program manager at NOAA’s air resources laboratory, said: “Not only do CO₂ and temperature correlate, but there is a causative relationship as well that is unequivocal.”
- According to him, the social media posts misinterpret the graph by cherry-picking data from only eight of the 142 years covered –1880 to 2022–, ignoring the fact that in this period the data shows an increase in global average temperature.
- According to NOAA, the years 2015 and 2016 were heavily affected by the weather event known as El Niño, which helped raise global temperatures to record levels. In the following years, about three La Niñas –which bring lower temperatures– helped to slightly cool global temperatures.
USA
Bill Gates did not tweet about putting vaccines in food
False claim: Social media users in the United States have shared a screenshot of an alleged post made by billionaire and philanthropist Bill Gates on his official Twitter account in which he suggests putting vaccines in food.
“Vaccines in our food supply solves the problem of vaccine hesitancy,” reads the tweet.
Truth:
- A search of Bill Gates' verified Twitter account, including deleted or archived messages, shows that he has not made any posts suggesting putting vaccines in food.
- In a statement to the Associated Press, a spokesperson for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation said the tweet shared on social media is false.
- A well-known proponent of vaccine research and development, Bill Gates is a constant target of misinformation from supporters of the anti-vaccine movement.
Brazil
Pictures of emaciated Yanomami indigenous people were taken in Brazil, not in Venezuela
False claim: Social media users in Brazil have shared the claim that two pictures published by the press showing starving Yanomami indigenous people have been taken in Venezuela, and not in Brazil, as reported in articles about the humanitarian crisis affecting Brazil's largest indigenous territory.
Truth:
- One of the images shows an indigenous man lying on a stretcher and wearing only underwear. The second image shows indigenous children sitting on the ground around pots and pans. In both pictures, it is possible to see that the man and the children show signs of malnutrition.
- The image of the indigenous man was released to the press by Condisi-YY (District Council of Indigenous Health Yanomami and Ye'kuana). In a statement to the brazilian fact-checking agency Aos Fatos, Júnior Hekurari Yanomami, president of Condisi-YY, informed that the picture was taken in Alto Alegre, in Brazil's northern state of Roraima, inside the Yanomami Indigenous Land.
- On the uniforms of the health workers attending to the indigenous man, it is possible to see the logos of SUS (Brazil’s Unified Health System) and of Samu (Brazil’s Mobile Emergency Care Service).
- The image of the children was released by the Yanomami Urihi association. The picture was taken by Antonio Alvarado, who shared in his social media accounts other images of his participation in a mission to assist the Yanomami indigenous people in the region of Surucucu, in Roraima. In the picture, it is also possible to see André Siqueira, a Brazilian doctor and researcher who was sent to the area by the Pan American Health Organization.
Spain
Spain's Finance Ministry did not publish a tweet saying “don't be like Shakira”
False claim: Social media users in Spain have shared the claim that the country's Finance Ministry reportedly published on its official Twitter account a message paraphrasing the new song released by Colombian singer Shakira “Music Sessions #53,” in partnership with Argentine producer Bizarrap.
“Now that women don't cry because they cash in, remember, don't be like @Shakira,” reads the tweet.
Truth:
- A search of the Spain's Finance Ministry’s verified Twitter account, including deleted or archived messages, finds no posts related to Shakira.
- In a statement to the Spanish fact-checking agency Newtral, a spokesperson for the Spain's Finance Ministry said that the tweet circulating on social media is false and that the ministry does not comment on the tax situation of specific taxpayers.
- Shakira is being charged with six crimes against the Treasury, involving an alleged tax fraud of 14.5 million euros. According to the Spanish Prosecutor's Office, between 2012 and 2014 the Colombian singer pretended not to reside in Spain to avoid paying taxes, putting her money in tax havens. The artist claims that the accusations are “false” and that she has “the confidence of having done things the right way.”
Asia
No evidence that AI robots killed 29 scientists in Japan
False claim: Social media users have shared the claim that artificial intelligence robots reportedly killed 29 scientists in a laboratory in Japan.
The posts use a video by American ufologist Linda Moulton Howe, author of books and television shows about aliens, as the source of the information.
Truth:
- A reverse image search shows that the video in which Howe claims that four robots killed 29 scientists in a laboratory in Japan was recorded during the Conscious Life Expo event in Los Angeles in February 2018.
- The panel presented by the ufologist was titled “Is A. I. An Existential Threat to Human Civilization?” Part of the panel description on the event’s official webpage reads: “People in the UFO/E.T. abduction syndrome have been saying for decades that some of the beings they have dealt with were clearly Someone else’s programmed androids and robots.”
- During her presentation, Howe does not disclose when the incident happened, the name of the lab allegedly involved in the case, or any identification about the people she claims to have died in the incident.
- In a statement to Reuters, the Robotics Policy Office of the Japan Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said: “To our knowledge there is no basis in fact regarding the matter you inquired about.”
