Fact-Check Dispatch: Chicago river dyed red, Breaking Bad science books in Poland, and Swifties for Trump
Issue 7 of the Spotlight Fact-Check Dispatch
Spotlight is a newsletter created by Eurovision News in collaboration with Members of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). It aims to combat misinformation and promote fact-checking efforts in Europe. The newsletter serves as a platform to showcase the fact-checking work of European public service media broadcasters.
Image showing Chicago River dyed red for DNC is altered
A photo circulating on social media claimed the Chicago River was dyed red by the Democratic National Convention to “celebrate” abortion rights.
The photo was published on Monday, August 19, on social media platform X, linking it to an article titled, “DNC Dyes Chicago River Red To Celebrate Abortion”.
Recent social media activity and news reports show no evidence the Chicago River has been dyed red.
Claim that DNC is offering free abortions, vasectomies to Chicago attendees is false
Information circulating on U.S. right-wing media claimed that the Democratic National Convention would be offering Chicago attendees free abortions and vasectomies. An article published by right-wing columnist and radio host Todd Starnes falsely claimed the DNC was providing free abortions and vasectomies to its attendees.
The DNC listed on its website an event focused on reproductive freedom that will take place during the convention but did not mention it is offering free abortions, nor does it feature Planned Parenthood as one of its vendors.
Trump posts AI-generated images to claim support of Taylor Swift and fans
Former U.S. president Donald Trump shared a series of images appearing to show Taylor Swift fans wearing T-shirts saying ‘Swifties for Trump’, as well as a poster depicting Taylor Swift with text saying ‘TAYLOR WANTS YOU TO VOTE FOR DONALD TRUMP’ — implying the pop superstar has endorsed Trump in his re-election bid.
A small red text box on the image reads ‘SATIRE’. The alt text on the image — an accessibility feature that requires users to take the extra step to click in and read what is on the image — contains the caveat: “SATIRE – There is no Swifties For Trump movement – but there should be.”
The uploader is a large conservative account with close to 400,000 followers, that is endorsing Trump/Vance in its bio. The images of the girls in Trump T-shirts bear the hallmarks of being AI-generated. The account features other AI-generated images, including its profile banner in which Trump is facing a Star Wars Stormtrooper in front of an aquarium.
Purported Donald Trump post criticising Elon Musk over X interview is parody
A screenshot of a purported X post by former President Donald Trump criticising billionaire Elon Musk over an interview on Musk’s platform X began to spread on social media following the interview which took place on August 13. In the post, Trump criticises Musk for asking him “rude questions,” refers to him as “Rocket Boy,” and chides him for allowing a hashtag on X calling Trump “Daffy Cuck” and allegedly mocking his voice during the interview.
The interview between Musk and Trump was conducted on X and was marred by technical glitches which caused it to be delayed by some 40 minutes. When the interview got underway, Trump’s voice appeared to sound different than usual, and the former president also appeared to speak with a slurred voice or a lisp.
At a quick glance, the screenshot could appear to be of a an X post by Trump because of the profile picture and the account name but on inspection it turns out there are a number of factors that give away that it is, in fact, not.
If we begin at the bottom, the date says August 122. And further to the right it is even stated that it is a “Parody by Rub.”
Science textbook cover featuring Breaking Bad characters is not genuine
An image posted by a page called Scenic Depictions of Slavic Life on Facebook was described as showing a chemistry book for high schools in Poland. The post appears to suggest that an image from the show is being used on the cover of a school book in Poland. The account is dedicated to posting nostalgic content relating to life in eastern Europe.
There are clues that the book cover was not legitimately published for use in schools, instead likely being made by someone as a joke. The bottom right corner of the cover features the publisher, Nowa Era, which is a real school book publishing house.
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