- Mar 4, 2024
- Jul 27, 2022
In the age of new media, differentiating the real from the fake is a big issue. The authentic sources are not differentiated from the unauthentic sources. In the age of a plethora of news channels and other sources, there is a lot of trouble involved in the verification of the sources of news articles. A lot of people have been victims of spreading rumours through the medium of fake news that is existing on social media.
In this list also is 2011 Cricket World Cup-winning cricketer Virender Sehwag who has become a victim of believing the fake to be true.
A similar incident happened on Saturday. The former India opener shared a tweet on social media congratulating Hima Das for winning a gold medal in the 400 meters race at the Commonwealth Games 2022. But, once he realized that he had spread misinformation. He took immediate action and deleted the tweet.
Several screenshots of his tweet, however, have surfaced on social media.
This is not the first time Sehwag has shared a fake piece of information on social media. The most extensively reported was the image he used to pay his tribute to Galwan Valley martyrs. This shows that even prominent personalities can get trapped in the web of fake news, which can be a dangerous thing for everyone else concerned.
Fake news can cause panic and a change in the atmosphere it can also be responsible for riots and enmity so one should only circulate news after verifying the authenticity of sources.
While the news of Das winning the medal was not true, India is off the mark in the medals tally with Sanket Sargar who bagged a silver medal in the Men’s 55 kg weightlifting. Later on, Gururaja Poojary (bronze), Mirabai Chanu (gold), and Bindyarani Devi (sliver), all won medals in weightlifting, taking India’s medal tally to four.