As of writing this, this tweet shares a video that has been viewed 681,000 times that purports to be an act of protest at the United Nations:

People copied it to YouTube under multiple accounts:

It was widely circulated on the left, who praised the resilience of the Palestinian people:

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It was roundly criticized by major figures on the right who used it to show the United Nations was out of control:

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So the question we have is a weird one, I know. But did it actually happen?

We’ll give you a hint: it didn’t. But find a source confirming that finding.

Further Discussion

  1. People make mistakes. But when you make mistakes on Twitter or Facebook or Tumblr or YouTube the mistakes usually far outrun corrections. For people who spread this video accidentally, what is the best way to correct it? Delete the retweet? Send a new one? What if you texted it to a friend? Should you follow up?
  2. Many people laugh off the harm spreading falsehoods like this. They didn’t mean to spread it, they will say, but in the end it’s not about what happened as much as it is about expressing what they think and it doesn’t hurt anyone. What are your feelings on that approach to sharing material?
  3. Say you followed a YouTuber, writer, or journalist who spread this without checking it first. Should you unfollow them? Unsubscribe? Why or why not?
  4. It’s quick enough to check this video: but what reasons might you have had to suspect it? (Think both of our habit, and the features of the video)