The international television company Al Jazeera denied the information that this story was created by its correspondents. A spokesperson for the TV company said that the video, as well as the information in it, is fake and was fabricated by a third party.
Some network users, as well as propaganda Telegram channels, are distributing a video with the symbols of the Al Jazeera TV channel, which allegedly analyzes the comments of Ukrainians on social networks regarding the death of the Titan bathyscaphe. The story claims that Ukrainians are allegedly accusing Titan’s passengers of being wasteful, arguing that the money spent on the excursion should have been donated to help Ukraine.
“Ukraine needs help while these people spend a fortune on stupid entertainment,” “$250K for a sightseeing tour? I’m not surprised they disappeared”, “While they are partying, we are really drowning. I hope they won’t be rescued,” are the comments allegedly left by Ukrainians on social media in the Al Jazeera-styled “video”.
In fact, this video was fabricated. The attackers deliberately used the Qatari TV company’s logo and design for propaganda purposes. The company’s official Twitter page states that the video has nothing to do with Al Jazeera.
Al Jazeera said in a statement that they noticed the fake after Reuters journalists asked them for comment.
“The video circulating on social media, claiming to be from Al Jazeera and featuring content that depicts Ukrainian people condemning the passengers of the Titan submarine for lavishly spending money on their expedition is not authentic. We want to clarify that the video does not originate from Al Jazeera, and we assert that the content has been fabricated by a third party.” the Al Jazeera website says.
The TV company representative drew attention to the fact that earlier propagandists had already created similar fake reports under the Al Jazeera logo. Then, on behalf of the TV company, the attackers spread disinformation that Ukrainian fans were allegedly detained in Qatar for “propagandizing Nazism.”
On June 22, the wreckage of the Titanic bathyscaphe, which disappeared during a dive to the Titanic shipwreck, was found in the Atlantic Ocean. Five people on board are presumed dead: 58-year-old British businessman and explorer Hamish Harding, 48-year-old Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son Suleman, 61-year-old Stockton Rush, director of OceanGate, and 77-year-old French explorer Paul Henri Nargeolet.
This is not the first time that the perpetrators have stylized their propaganda videos to look like reports from the world’s most famous media. For example, StopFake journalists have repeatedly refuted similar “reports” created in this way in their materials Fake: BBC Video Proves That Kramatorsk was Shelled by Ukrainian Army, Fake: Ukrainian Football Fans Detained in Qatar for Nazi Propaganda, Fake: EU Released Video on Why Ukraine Should not Become NATO member.
