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PODCAST

Truth or Fake

FRANCE 24 English

Truth or Fake is a fact-checking rendez-vous in association with the FRANCE 24 Observers. Our content focuses on false images circulating online and how to identify them. Monday to Thursday at 8:45pm and 10:20pm Paris time.

news & politics

All Episodes

00:05:24

Fake video announcing ‘coup in France’ sparks anger...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/12/17

A viral video claiming that a coup d’État has taken place in France has racked up more than 13 million views on social media. Although clearly AI-generated, it sparked tensions between the Élysée and Facebook’s parent company: Meta refused to take it down. In this edition of Truth or Fake, we break down who created this AI-generated video, and how it even reached the French president himself.

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00:05:29

Lumpy skin disease: Storm-1516 spreads disinformation...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/12/16

As France battles an outbreak of lumpy skin disease among livestock, some farmers are protesting government measures such as the culling of entire herds. Online, videos claiming to support them have gone viral… but some are AI-generated. In this edition of Truth or Fake, we take a closer look at how a Russian-linked influence network, known as Storm-1516, is amplifying misleading narratives around real-life protests.

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00:05:54

Ahmed or Edward? Disinformation clouds identity of...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/12/15

In the aftermath of the anti-Semitic Bondi Beach attack, footage emerged showing a mysterious bystander disarming one of the gunmen. Scores of users praised this courageous man, who was quickly identified by journalists. But other accounts claimed that the true hero was not Ahmed Al Ahmed, but Edward Crabtree. In this edition of Truth or Fake, we confirm that the genuine hero was indeed Ahmed Al Ahmed, a 43-year-old Syrian refugee living in Australia.

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00:04:17

No, this video does not show immigrants destroying...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/12/11

As the festive season gets into full swing in France, a video showing people seizing Christmas trees has gone viral on social media. Some, including the spokesperson for Eric Zemmour's far-right Reconquête party, are falsely claiming that the footage is proof that immigrants are destroying Christmas trees across the country. However, as Charlotte Hughes explains, his allegations are baseless: the video in fact shows a store being looted during the "Yellow Vest" protests in 2018.

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00:04:59

Is the Louvre cursed? Water leak triggers new wave of...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/12/10

The Louvre museum is making headlines once again. This time, not because of stolen jewellery, but because of a water leak. A few days ago, a pipe malfunctioned causing water to rain over rare books, and triggering a wave of AI-generated disinformation. We take a closer look in this edition of Truth or Fake.

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00:05:32

Did JD Vance say it's 'reasonable' to not want...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/12/09

A clip from a JD Vance interview has resurfaced in recent days, with the claim the US vice president said it's "totally reasonable to not want neighbours who speak another language." Social media users reminded Vance that he's married to a daughter of Indian immigrants and has biracial children. Vedika Bahl takes a look at the clip in full, and whilst his phrasing is different than the social media claims, he did double down that people "need a common language, and that language is English".

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00:05:01

'Abolish the EU': Elon Musk clashes with Europe over...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/12/08

In what can only be described as an online posting frenzy, Elon Musk has made a series of attacks against the European Union, calling for it to be abolished. This comes after the bloc slapped X (formerly Twitter) with a €120 million fine for breaching European transparency regulations, including its "deceptive" blue check marks. The bloc has also triggered accusations of "censorship" from several officials in Donald Trump's administration. Vedika Bahl explains in this edition of Truth or Fake.

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00:04:30

US Admiral Alvin Holsey's resignation: What we know

Truth or Fake ·

2025/12/04

Back in October, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth announced the shock resignation of the commander of US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), Navy Admiral Alvin Holsey, who will be stepping down on December 12. As that date approaches, there is much speculation over the reason for the admiral's departure. FRANCE 24's Charlotte Hughes tells us what we know.

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00:04:48

Viral TikTok account impersonates France 24, spreads...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/12/03

In recent weeks, a viral account on Tiktok has impersonated France 24 in a bid to spread fake news. Charlotte Hughes takes a closer look at the false content in question, and what more we know about its origins.

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00:04:33

Did Russia accidentally destroy its ability to send...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/12/02

On November 27th, Russia launched a Soyuz rocket to the International Space Station. Since then, news articles claim that Moscow has accidentally destroyed its only launch pad capable of sending humans into space. According to experts looking at the footage, this is true for the first time in decades. Roscosmos said it would repair the damage "shortly", but analysts doubt this is doable in less than a few months if not years. We take a closer look in this edition of Truth or Fake.

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00:05:33

Hong Kong fire: Misinformation targets firefighters...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/12/01

Hong Kong is reeling from its deadliest fire in seven decades, with at least 151 casualties. The blaze broke out on Wednesday in the Wang Fuk Court complex, and wasn't fully extinguished until Friday. The tragedy has also sparked a wave of controversies and misinformation – especially over the work of firefighters and the role played by traditional bamboo scaffolding. We take a closer look in this edition of Truth or Fake.

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00:04:39

Yes, ICE arrested the mother of Karoline Leavitt's...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/11/27

33-year-old Brazil-born Bruna Ferreira was detained this week by ICE officials whilst on the school run to pick up her child, the son she shares with the brother of White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt. Whilst the Department of Homeland Security calls Ferreira a "criminal illegal alien", her family and lawyer say there's no proof of a criminal record, nor any illegal status. Karoline Leavitt has declined to comment. Vedika Bahl goes through what we know in this edition of Truth or Fake.

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00:05:11

Candace Owens falsely accuses the Macrons of...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/11/26

In a post viewed over 43 million times, Candace Owens has accused the French presidential couple of paying for her assassination. She also accused France of being complicit in Charlie Kirk's murder amongst a slew of other conspiracy theories. But with little factual foundation, these accusatins remain just that: conspiracy theories. Vedika Bahl debunks the allegations in Truth or Fake.

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00:05:41

Violence against women: Debunking misogynistic...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/11/25

To mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, Vedika Bahl talks through the rise in misogynistic propaganda online, and dismantles some of the popular masculinist arguments against women.

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00:05:35

India, Nigeria, Sri Lanka: X reveals where viral MAGA...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/11/24

Elon Musk's X has rolled out a new location feature: the app now shows the country or region that the account is based in. This has triggered outrage, confusion and ridicule on the platform, particularly as many political accounts – namely prominent MAGA accounts – were not even listed within the United States. The new feature also meant the Department of Homeland Security was accused of being operated from Israel. Vedika Bahl explains in Truth or Fake.

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00:05:49

‘Protecting Israel’s image’: X disabled Hebrew...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/11/20

Elon Musk's AI chatbot Grok says it has disabled automatic translation on Hebrew posts, citing a surge in mistranslated expressions that made content appear more inflammatory to those who do not speak the language. The move effectively prevents non-Hebrew speakers from easily accessing translated versions of such content, and X users reacted with fury. But is Grok’s claim credible, given its long history – and ongoing pattern – of spreading false and offensive content? Vedika Bahl explains in this

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00:06:04

'Operation Matryochka': Russian propaganda machine...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/11/19

A series of French media houses - including France 24 - have been targeted and impersonated by a Russian disinformation campaign. The operation capitalised on the recent 10th anniversary of the 2015 Paris attacks, to sow division and discredit President Emmanuel Macron. The propaganda machine - named Operation Matryochka - is one we have seen and been targeted by before, as Vedika Bahl explains in Truth or Fake.

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00:04:35

Jeffrey Epstein's brother says the 'Bubba' in viral...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/11/18

An old photo of current US President Donald Trump and former US president Bill Clinton has gone viral, alongside one of Jeffrey Epstein's released emails that has attracted scrutiny. The photo is not as compromising as social media users would have it – but many have been left questioning who the "Bubba" is that Trump is allegedly "blowing" in the email. We take a closer look in this edition of Truth or Fake.

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00:04:41

No, Amazon rainforest trees were not cut down for COP30

Truth or Fake ·

2025/11/17

As the COP30 summit proceeds, Donald Trump and others continue to share the claim that 100,000 trees in the Amazon rainforest were chopped down to make way for a highway to the UN climate conference's host city, Belem. But the claim is misleading, as we explain in this edition of Truth or Fake.

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00:05:52

Paris attacks, 10 years on: How social media took...

Truth or Fake ·

2025/11/13

On the tenth anniversary of the deadliest terror attacks France has seen since World War II, we take a closer look at the major role social media played that tragic evening. From piecing together the initial timeline, to hashtags for finding shelter and global messages of solidarity, social media shaped how we understand the 2015 Paris attacks. Vedika Bahl explains in this special edition of Truth or Fake.

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