Some stories that didn’t really happen this week
A roundup of some of the most popular but completely untrue stories and visuals of the week. None of these are legit, even though they were shared widely on social media. The Associated Press checked them out. Here are the facts:
CLAIM: Video appears to show presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden on “The View” avoiding a question about inappropriate touching.
THE FACTS: The video, taken from Biden’s April 26, 2019, appearance on ABC’s daytime talk show “The View,” was edited to make it appear he failed to give a direct answer to the question about inappropriate touching. The Daily Caller, a conservative website, posted the edited clip on April 26, 2019, and labeled it as “satire.” Social media users shared the spoof video a year later with negative comments and no satire label. “Do you really want this man as your President? Seriously @JoeBiden #RacistBiden is not fit to be a leader even of his own home. Listen to him on the view. It is so funny how the ladies are trying to help him. Even put words on his mouth. Nothing worked for #CreepyJoeBiden,” stated one Twitter user, who shared the video on May 25. The video features multiple misleading edits, where key portions of Biden’s response were taken out. For example, in one instance, co-host Sunny Hostin asks Biden, “Are you prepared to apologize to those women?” In the actual exchange Biden states, “Look, here’s the deal, I have to be and everyone has to be much more aware of the private space of men and women … and I am much more cognizant of that.” The camera stays fixed on Biden. The edited clip takes out large portions of Biden’s response to the question to make it appear incoherent: “Look, here’s the deal,
I am so, like for example, I actually thought in my head when I walked out here, I mean, do
I ... we’re friends. I should be able to read better. But I have never in my life done anything in approaching a woman that has been…” In the edited clip, the co-hosts appear shocked at Biden’s response. Their facial expressions were spliced in and taken from other points of the interview. In another part of the edited clip, co-host Joy Behar says, “Here’s your opportunity right now to just say you apologize, you’re sorry, I think we can clean this up right now.” In the actual clip, she poses this comment when discussing Anita Hill. Hill accused thenSupreme Court-nominee Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment and Biden led the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing into the accusation. Clips of the original interview can be found on official accounts belonging to “The View” on Twitter and YouTube.
CLAIM: Two photos circulating on social media show the Minneapolis police officer who was videotaped kneeling on a black man’s neck during an arrest on Monday. In one the man pictured is wearing a baseball cap that says “Make Whites Great Again,” and in the other he is on stage at a Trump rally.
THE FACTS: The officer, Derek Chauvin, is not in either of the photos. On May 27, a photo was shared widely on social media featuring a man wearing a “Make Whites Great Again” hat and holding a blackberry between his thumb and index finger. The hand appeared to be making an OK sign, a gesture that has been used widely by white supremacists. Jonathan Lee Riches, a known internet troll, confirmed he is the man in the photo, but he says the image was altered and he was not wearing the hat. Facebook and Twitter users shared the image on Wednesday claiming it showed Chauvin. In many cases the photo was juxtaposed with a photo of Chauvin kneeling on Floyd’s neck. Chauvin and three other police officers were dismissed from the department soon after a video emerged that showed him kneeling on Floyd’s neck, even after he complained of being unable to breathe. Several prominent Twitter users, including Ice Cube, posted the photo under the false impression it showed Chauvin. Riches said his face was edited into the image, but did not provide the original photo when asked. The windows and landscape in the background of the photo appear to match the backgrounds of photos Riches has posted on Facebook. Riches is known for creating outrageous posts after tragic and politically charged events. He pretended to be the shooter’s uncle after a 2012 elementary school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, and was indicted in federal court in 2018 for posing as the gunman who shot former U.S. Rep. Gabby Giffords.
Other photos shared widely on social media after Floyd’s death wrongly claimed Chauvin was among police officers onstage with President Donald Trump at a rally in Minneapolis last October. The officers are smiling in shirts that said “Cops for Trump.” “Photos Released on Social Media Appeared to Show Minneapolis Police Officer Who Murdered George Floyd,” read the headline of a Facebook post by leftleaning news website the Political Tribune, which had racked up nearly 120,000 views on Wednesday. “Did this murder ‘Make America great again?’” read a post retweeted more than 1,700 times. The widespread photos actually show Bloomington Police Federation President Mike Gallagher, not Chauvin, according to Minneapolis police union president Lt. Bob Kroll. “Can you put a stop to the false narrative please?” Kroll told the AP. “None of the officers in the incident were near the Trump rally.” Gallagher did not return