Is the Polish population turning against the Ukrainian refugees in the country? A video that circulates on various social networks is apparently intended to give this impression. It claims that there are Wi-Fi networks in the Polish capital, Warsaw, named with anti-Ukrainian slogans. The purpose of the action is “without a doubt to intimidate Ukrainian refugees,” says the video.
Claim: A pro-Russian channel spreads on X an alleged video from DWand writes: An anti-Ukrainian flash mob is taking place in Poland, in which refugees from Ukraine are insulted with WiFi network names. Accordingly, Poles named their networks “Ukraine is Hell”, “Murderer from Ukraine”, “Ukrainian, go home”. The video is also spreading Facebookand Telegram.
A comparison reveals differences: on the left a real DW video, on the right the fake video that is not from DW. Font and font position are not identical and reveal the replica of the DW video template.
DW fact check: Fake.
The video was neither produced by DW, nor can the facts mentioned be proven. The font used in the video does not match the one used by DW in its video template. In addition, the position of the writing is different than in DW videos. This can be seen in a direct comparison between a real DW video and the fake video.
Credibility feigned by “spoofing”.
It is not the first time that channels, which often disseminate pro-Russian and anti-Ukrainian content, have posted fake videos claiming to come from Western media. Fake videos and false tweets from CNN, BBC and DW have already been circulating in the past year. This form of disinformation is called spoofing, in which a digital identity is faked in order to gain trust and credibility.
The woman can be seen on the left in a screenshot of the BBC report from February 2023, on the right in the alleged DW video
One of the reasons why the video looks so authentic is that it is structured in the same way journalists from DW and other serious media would do it: The first shot shows the market square in Warsaw’s old town and brings the viewer to the scene of the action.
In fact, the woman who walks across a Polish train station in the third shot with a large colorful bag and a child by the hand (recognizable by the security guard of the Polish train) comes from a BBC report.
Stock material reveals unprofessionalism
Shortly afterwards, however, something follows that should not appear in a journalistic video: The hands operating a smartphone come from stock material, i.e. commercially shot sequences that were broadcast in December 2022 on the Platform Pixabay were published. That they were taken in Poland is just as unlikely as the possibility that they are in the hands of a Ukrainian refugee.
The same probably applies to the young man who is looking at his mobile phone in the middle of the video. One thing is clear: this scene was also shot in one in 2020 Youtube-Video used.
Further inconsistencies fuel doubts about the information
A few other things can also make you suspicious without the pictures being found on the Internet. Why does someone type in their password on an English-language login page when the report is from Poland? Why do most of the Wi-Fi networks in the filmed cell phone have English names and not Polish or Ukrainian names when they are allegedly directed by Poles against Ukrainians?
Ukrainian Internet surfers would probably understand the English Wi-Fi network name “UkrainiansGoHome” at least as well in Polish: “UkraińcyIdzDoDomo”. Because in Ukrainian you could translate it like this: “UkrayintsiIdyDodomu”.
Polish willingness to help Ukrainians remains high
The Ukrainian Center to Combat Disinformation calls not only the video, but also the content outright wrong. Of course, it cannot be completely ruled out that there are not WLAN networks with these names somewhere in Warsaw. However, there are no reliable indications that this is the case in the fake video.
Even if the openness towards taking in more Ukrainian refugees in Poland has decreased somewhat over time, it is still high. In one Survey in April 202379 percent were in favor, only 19 percent were against. In a previous survey, 83 percent wanted Poland to help Ukrainian refugees and only 11 percent were against it.
2023-08-30 07:40:49
#Fact #check #Wrong #video #circulation
