With all that is happening on the border, it is a given that the battle will also take to the media platforms and be fought by those on their computers versus those at the front lines. Each side, Azerbaijan and Armenia, will try to instill panic while strengthening the dissenting views against the opposing country. PanArmenian.Net has put together an interesting article to help those following the media be able to tell the difference between a fake piece and a real one, one that has been manipulated from the unadulterated. It is a short guideline that should help prevent unnecessary panic as we keep watch over the goings on at the Armenian and NKR borders.
Real vs Fake Images
During the escalation of wartime events, the Internet has a tendency to flood over with posts of dead soldiers and battles, often taken during other horrific events from around the world. These are, however, claimed to be Armenian dead from our side and Azerbaijani dead from the other. To check the authenticity of the photos, right click on the image, click on “Search Google for Image” and wait to see what it brings up. If there is even one photo taken beforehand, then you are looking at a fake/copy.
Real vs Fake Videos
Checking for the authenticity of a video is quite a bit harder. If it is a Youtube video, you may take the link and search for it through the Youtube Data Viewer. It will show the original, as well as the place and date where the video was shot. If you notice that the date and place do not match, it is clearly a fake. Furthermore, if the video has been placed on a profit-based website, it should raise a red flag for you, especially since over the past few years the media outlets that have been more neutral and objective, or internationally-based, have been systematically attacked or dismantled. In addition, there are many sites that appear to be Armenian or Russian but are in fact owned by Azerbaijani news. In order to find a list of such websites, please check out Media Expert and IT Security Specialist Samvel Martirosyan’s blog.
Facebook Comments/Statuses
For obvious reasons, these days the Facebook platform has become a media frenzy with much to reach and give opinions on. In some intriguing, apparently “reliable” sources where it is claimed that there are “eyewitness accounts” and revelations from “friends” to state about tens of hundreds of casualties in the Artsakh (NKR) territories. These comments and statuses only incite panic and are not to be taken for face value. There is no good that comes out of trusting or spreading this misinformation.
Information Available on Only One Website
There have been cases in the past of Azerbaijani hackers taking over websites and placing information that is false or corrupted, increasing the number of victims on Armenia’s side, as well as mentioning the loss of land. This has been done to well-trusted sites as well, which cause major confusion. If notice that certain information about the dead, wounded or territorial losses exists on a single site alone, it is almost exclusively the result of hacker activity.
Source : Repat Armenia