Image of inflatable pig bearing Star of David is from Roger Waters gig in 2012, not Berlin 2023
Image of pig at Pink Floyd co-founder's gig is over 10 years old
CLAIM
An image shared by social media users purported to show an inflatable pig bearing the Star of David at a Roger Waters gig in Berlin on May 24, 2023.
RATING
The claim is partly false. The image was captured at a Roger Waters gig in 2012.
BACKGROUND
Several social media users shared an image showing an inflatable pig bearing the Star of David claiming it was from a Roger Waters gig in Berlin, Germany, in May, 2023.
The image, which began trending on May 25, shows the inflatable animal soaring over the crowd at a concert venue bearing several different logos and phrases, including the Star of David.
Sharing the image, one user wrote: “So apparently, THIS is what was on hand at Roger Waters’ Berlin concert last night. Nah, nothing remotely antisemitic about a star of David on a pig. Move along, move along…”
Another user, whose version of the image received more than 1.5 million views on Twitter, tweeted: “The scary thing isn’t that Roger Waters is a deranged bigot who dresses like an S.S. officer while flying a pig marked with the Star of David. The scary thing is that such a deranged bigot can fill an arena in Berlin.”
Christians United for Israel, an American Christian organization that supports Israel, which published an article on the image, said: “Roger Water is in hot water once again after his latest show in Berlin, Germany included the rocker wearing Nazi-like uniforms, a black pig adorned with a Star of David, and a not so subtle comparisons of Israel to the Nazis. It is no wonder that Jews around the world are calling him antisemitic and the German police are investigating the concert for hate crimes.”
Waters’ use of inflatable animals has been well-documented over the decades, supposedly inspired by Pink Floyd’s 1977 album “Animals”, the band’s tenth studio album.
Taking inspiration from George Orwell’s political fable Animal Farm, the album draws loose parallels to its themes. Its lyrics vividly portray distinct societal classes as different animals:
The menacing dogs
The oppressive and power-hungry pigs
The docile, compliant herd of sheep
METHOD
Examining the text of the image shared on Facebook on May 25, which claims Waters played in Berlin a day earlier on May 24, we are directed to the official Roger Waters website. The official, tour programme of Waters’ “First Ever Farewell Tour” lists Waters as performing at the 02 Arena in Prague, Czech Republic, on May 24, 2023, debunking the theory the image was captured on May 24.
A reverse image search of the photo directs us to a blog post published on July 13, 2012, which is a review of Roger Waters performing The Wall in Washington, D.C., a day earlier.
The lead image of the piece is a direct match for the photo purporting to be from Berlin in May 2023.
An extract from the piece reads: “If you want your concert experience to include explosions, fireworks, flying pigs, puppets that drop from the ceiling, wild animations, flashing lights, surround sound systems that thunder in your ear, impeccable musicianship, and songs performed from an album that sold about 789 billion copies than The Wall did not disappoint in any fashion. Never one to short change his audience (at least when it comes to giving them a great show) Roger Waters produced the most fantastical, spectacular rock concert I have ever been witness to. It was Cirque de Waters.”
Videos from Waters’ gigs in Belin on May 17 and 18, 2023, show he did use a pig during his set, but a white inflatable, which did not bear the Star of David.
From this analysis, we can conclude that the image of Black pig was not filmed in Berlin in May of 2023, but in Washington, D.C., in July of 2012.
RATING
The claim is partly false. The image was captured at a Roger Waters gig in Washington, D.C. in 2012, not in Berlin in 2023.
SOURCES
Facebook.com. (2023). Facebook. [online] Available at: https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10160872536442594&set=a.119379762593 [Accessed June 2, 2023].
Twitter. (2023). Available at: https://twitter.com/VerminusM/status/1661549872883875847 [Accessed June 2, 2023].
Christians United for Israel. (2023). Roger Waters sinks to lowest depths as he compares Israel to Nazis while performing in Berlin. [online] Available at: https://www.cufi.org.uk/news/roger-waters-sinks-to-lowest-depths-as-he-compares-israel-to-nazis-while-performing-in-berlin/ [Accessed June 2, 2023].
Wikipedia Contributors (2023). Animals (Pink Floyd album). [online] Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animals_(Pink_Floyd_album) [Accessed June 2, 2023].
BUMS LOGIC. (2012). Roger Waters Performs The Wall in Washington DC. [online] Available at: https://bumslogic.wordpress.com/2012/07/13/roger-waters-performs-the-wall-in-washington-dc-2/ [Accessed June 2, 2023].
Frick Turnerstick (2023). Roger Waters – In the Flesh / Run Like Hell – Berlin am 17.05.2023. YouTube. Available at: Link [Accessed June 2, 2023].
Koch, G. (2023). Roger Waters Full Concert Berlin 18.05.2023. YouTube. Available at: Link [Accessed June 2, 2023].