Europe’s fake news fightback

Many posts on social media claiming to pertain to the current conflict in Ukraine are in fact videos and photos different events in other regions that happened several years ago. We tell you more in this edition of Truth or Fake.

Many posts on social media claiming to pertain to the current conflict in Ukraine are in fact videos and photos of different events in other regions that happened several years ago. We tell you more in this edition of Truth or Fake.

The video-sharing app TikTok has become a tool in the hybrid war in Ukraine, but fake news and scams connected to the conflict also abound on the platform. We take a closer look in this edition of Truth or Fake.

Social media posts may seem insignificant when compared with the brutality on the ground in Ukraine, but what goes viral is directly affecting the war and Russia knows this. This Friday, the chairman of the Russian parliament Vyacheslav Volodin railed against foreign social media, calling it a "weapon" that Russia "must oppose". This comes after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky secured a series of victories against Russia on the international stage, thanks in no small part to his internet star power.

We bring you the front pages, which focus on the victims of Vladimir Putin's brutal war in Ukraine. Also, we look at the origins of the "Z" symbol, which has become a way to express support for Putin and the invasion. Papers dedicate their editions to the women of Ukraine, whether they are fighting on the frontlines or giving birth in basements. Finally, we look at how Ukraine's first lady has emerged from the shadows to rally Ukrainians and boost morale.

During French Press and Media in Schools Week from March 21 to 26, the FRANCE 24 Observers team when to meet a class of students from the Paul Valéry high school in Paris. We answered their questions about disinformation and exchanged tips on how to sort the real from the fake. This report covers our experience, and ends with an image the students verified themselves.

We look at the Russian commander dubbed the "butcher of Mariupol" by the Times of London. We also discover a photo from a paediatric hospital that has come to define the war in Ukraine. Plus, Prince William and Kate are accused of colonial overtones in their official tour of the Caribbean, Italy crashes and burns in its World Cup qualifier and the founder of modern Internet culture, the GIF, passes away.

Sri Lanka's government said restrictions on access to social media platforms came a day after protesters defied a nationwide curfew to demand government accountability.

A fake "Le Figaro Live" news report on social media claims to report on Chanel stores in Paris being vandalised with Hitler images. The stickers reference Coco Chanel's Nazi connections during World War II. The backlash against the brand has emerged in protest at Chanel's sale ban in Russia amid the war in Ukraine. We tell you more in this edition of Truth or Fake.

We take a look at some fake news stories that have been circulating in the context of the Johnny Depp-Amber Heard defamation case in the US.

We take a look at some fake news stories that have been circulating in the context of the Johnny Depp-Amber Heard defamation case in the US.

Egyptian influencers, especially women, have become the target of a crackdown by authorities. At least a dozen women have been prosecuted since 2020 for ''attacking family values''. Two of them, Haneen Hossam and Mawada al-Adham, were sentenced to three and six years in jail on charges of "attacking society's values" and "inciting human trafficking". Like many TikTokers, they made videos of themselves dancing and lip-synching to music. For more on the crackdown, we speak to Souleimene Benghazi, an Egypt and Tunisia campaigner at Amnesty International.