A summary of the most popular but untrue stories and footage of the week. None of this is legal, although it has been widely shared on social media. Associated Press checked them. Here are the facts:
CLAIM: Troops in Washington turn their backs on President Joe Biden’s caravan as it heads for its inauguration at the US capital.
THE FACTS: In accordance with security protocols, some members of the National Guard were positioned with their backs to Biden’s freeway as it moved through Washington to the U.S. capital.
But social media users falsely suggest that a video shot by an ABC reporter shows Guard members turning their backs on Biden in a tone of contempt.
“Many of the military turned their backs on Biden’s motorcade,” claims one tweet with more than 3,000 likes sharing the footage. Another video that makes the false claim has had more than 100,000 views on YouTube.
Taken a step further, some social media users captured a photo of the video and showed it in posts along with photos of members of the Guard enthusiastically greeting former President Donald Trump during an unspecified event. The video with the false claim was reinforced by accounts that Trump supported and promoted misinformation in the past.
ABC reporter Ines de La Cuetara uploaded the video to Twitter around 10:30 a.m. Wednesday.
The video shows some Guard members facing the cars driving down the street while others turn their backs near Robert A. Taft Memorial in Constitution Avenue. More than 26,000 guards from across the country have been brought in to promote security for the inauguration following the violent riots at the Capitol.
The AP confirmed with the National Guard Bureau that Guard members had turned their backs on monitoring all possible threats, in accordance with the security protocol. During Trump’s inauguration, authorities could be seen, both with their backs to the highway. “These national guards were on duty with a mission to protect the president from possible threats. “Some are pointing outwards to ensure the safety of all,” said Darla Torres, a spokeswoman for the National Guard Bureau.
Kamala Harris rested on Bibles during oath, not a purse
CLAIM: When Vice President Kamala Harris was sworn in on Wednesday, she placed a black clutch bag on top of the Bible so she would not have to touch the holy book.
THE FACTS: Harris rests her hand on a Bible laid on another Bible while being sworn in office. But on Thursday, social media users shared a photo of the inauguration ceremony Wednesday, along with false allegations that Harris did not touch the Bible during the oath.
The photo shows Harris resting with her right hand and her left hand on an unidentified black item and reciting her oath of office. The black object rested on top of a thick Bible, both held by Harris’ husband, Doug Emhoff.
“She could not even bring herself to touch that Bible,” reads one Facebook post that has been viewed more than 35,000 times. “Do you all need it spelled out for you?” read another widely shared post. A believer in Christ could not wait to keep that Bible … A Satanist can not touch it! Note he has gloves … She has her clutch bag on top! ‘
But the black object on top of the larger Bible was a different Bible, as photos from a different angle confirmed. The Associated Press reported that Harris used two Bibles during her oath.
One belongs to Regina Shelton, a family friend whose Bible was sworn by Harris when he became attorney general of California and later senator. The other belongs to Thurgood Marshall, the first Supreme Court justice in African America.
Vice-Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff did not create the Telegram channel
CLAIM: Air Force General John Hyten, vice president of the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff, created a channel in the popular messaging program Telegram and posted it dozens of times, sharing videos, images and phrases such as “nothing can stop what is coming” and “THE TRUTH WILL SHOCK THE WORLD. ”
THE FACTS: Hyten’s spokesman, Maj. Trisha Guillebeau, confirmed to the AP that the general does not have a Telegram account and that the creator of the channel is posing as him. The Telegram channel entitled “General Hyten” was created on Monday.
By the next day, it had dozens of posts and more than 200,000 subscribers. Reports that apparently came from Hyten in the channel encouraged users not to give up and ‘have faith’.
Some reports contain videos or images of former President Donald Trump. The reports pointed to threatening news and the possible use of an emergency broadcasting system, reflecting a false theory that President Joe Biden’s inauguration on January 20 would be interrupted by emergency broadcasts or Trump appealing to the Insurrection Act.
Several posts in the channel also have terms such as ‘big awakening’, ‘storm’ and ‘nothing can stop what’s coming’, which is frequently used by supporters of QAnon, a false conspiracy theory rooted in the unfounded belief that Trump is deeply fight state enemies and a cabal of satan-worshiping cannibals who engage in child sex trafficking.
The person who shared the reports used an image of Hyten and claimed that he was, and even wrote: ‘The account is kept by me. -genhyten. However, Guillebeau confirmed to the AP that an impersonator was behind the bill.
“This Telegram account is fake,” Guillebeau said in a telephone interview. “General Hyten has no professional or personal social media accounts.” According to Marc-Andre Argentino, a doctoral candidate at Concordia University who studies the QAnon movement, the channel was named against hundreds of other Telegram channels populated by QAnon supporters. Telegram did not respond to a request for comment from the AP, but it appears to have affixed a warning label to the channel on Tuesday.