Russian-language media outlets ВОЕННОЕ ОБОЗРЕНИЕ, ЦАРЬГРАД, as well as the Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova shared a video showing that Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who arrived in the United States to attend the United Nations General Assembly, was allegedly greeted in New York with a billboard depicting the Ukrainian flag with the message “Glory to Urine”, instead of “Glory to Ukraine.” The video is being spread with the Fox News Digital logo.
The video is fabricated as there is no billboard in New York with a similar message. Additionally, the Fox News logo featured in the video was added using software.
Reuters has verified the footage. Using geolocation, it was determined that the video was actually shot in New York City, in Time Square, at the intersection of 42nd Street and 8th Avenue. The message “Glory to Urine” was added to the video using software. Upon arriving at the scene, the NBC investigative journalist discovered that there was a McDonald’s restaurant across the street from the billboard, which was not visible in the fake video. The journalist published the video on X. It is believed that the footage used in the fake video was shot in 2022, when McDonald’s did not yet exist at that address. In addition, Markian Kuzmowycz, who analyzes digital threats for Microsoft, published a photo taken in September 2023 that also shows McDonald’s.
It is also noteworthy that the video fabrication features the logo of Fox News, despite the fact that no video containing such content is available on the media outlet’s official website. Fox News confirmed via email to Reuters that the video was not published on their platform.
Big Outdoor, the media company, owns and operates some of the billboards in Times Square, including the one seen in the video. According to Reuters, Erin Watkins, the company’s general counsel, said in an email that no such message has ever appeared on its display. He added that the images are 100% fake.
The video fabrication, as if an anti-Ukraine and anti-Zelenskyy billboard had been placed in New York, was also spread in the past. For more information see the Myth Detector article:
Archive of Maria Zakharova’s post
Archive of ЦАРЬГРАД
Tekla Kharazishvili
Myth Detector Lab
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