Got called out for sharing a fake news story in my family group chat - here is what I changed

So about six weeks ago I shared this post about a politician supposedly buying a mansion with campaign money. My cousin who is a fact checker for a local paper in Ohio instantly replied with links showing it was a doctored screenshot from 2019. I was embarrassed because I usually think I am pretty good at spotting this stuff. But it made me realize I was only checking one source instead of cross referencing images. Now I run every viral image through a reverse image search before I share anything. I also started paying attention to the date stamps and URL structure more carefully. Has anyone else had a family member call them out and change how you look at things?

3 comments

3 Comments

abby_cooper8d ago

2019? That screenshot has been rotting online for five years and still fooled you.

carr.abby8d ago

My buddy sent me that exact screenshot in a group chat back in 2017 right after he had some dental surgery and was still loopy on painkillers. He swore up and down it was brand new and some huge scandal. Took three of us about ten minutes to find the original forum post from 2014 with timestamps and everything. He still gets crap about it every time someone posts a screenshot.

paige_robinson248d ago

The funny thing is that screenshot might be older than 2019. I remember seeing that same layout on some forums back in 2016. People keep recycling the same tired image and act like they caught something new. It's like a bad meme that just won't die but everyone pretends it's fresh.