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Hi,

This week, BOOM 🚀 launched a new initiative called

'BOOM FactCheck Tipline | Tathya Nu Mitra'

aimed at sensitizing citizens about how to fight misinformation using BOOM's Tipline with a pilot project in the state of Gujarat. 

In this edition, we are going to look at how to debunk audio clips and viral claims that are around 'what you hear' 🙉 and not 'what you see' 🙈 in a video. Let's begin! 

One of the formats through which misinformation is shared is: 🔈

Audio. 

While images and videos are relatively easier to debunk because one tends to see several visual clues, audio clips have their limitations since you have content only to hear and not to view. 

One of the ways to debunk audio clips is to pause and play them multiple times to find out clues in the audio note itself. Accordingly, connect with people/ associations/ organisations who can give credible information on the same. 

Sometimes, the viral claim is about the audio heard in the video. For instance, this week BOOM's fact-checking team analysed several news outlets claiming that the supporters of the Popular Front of India (PFI) raised  'Pakistan Zindabad' slogans at a protest in Pune.

In short, this is what BOOM did in order to debunk the claim:

☑️ Searched for several different videos from the protest site☑️ Videos included LIVE footage as well☑️ Analysed the videos carefully by pausing and playing (at different speeds) multiple times☑️ Spoke to people at the protest site

🔖 Did PFI Protesters In Pune Raise 'Pakistan Zindabad' Slogans? A FactCheck 

Also, BOOM has debunked several claims in the past where various slogans, even the ones that do not rhyme with 'Pakistan' were misheard as 'Pakistan Zindabad'. 

🔗 Read BOOM's

Twitter thread.

↪️ Was this forwarded to you?

How Did The 'Unlawful' Popular Front Of India Become So Popular? 

🔖 One of the reasons cited by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) for banning the Popular Front of India (PFI) and its affiliated organisations was the killing of Hindutva activists in Karnataka. 

The Hijab row in Karnataka had brought back the spotlight on the Islamist organisation that have long been related to attacks, killings and terrorist organisations. 

Months later, following a series of raids in several states including Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, and Delhi, and arrests of more than 170 cadres, the organisation has now been banned for five years in India as the centre accused it of "covertly working" to increase radicalization of one community by promoting a sense of insecurity in the country. 

What is the PFI? How did it emerge? And how did it become so popular? 

BOOM spoke to historians, authors and political researchers to understand how the now banned Popular Front Of India that was formed in Kerala became notorious and popular at the same time, over the years. 

Police Impose Section 144 Inside Jamia Campus But No One Knows Why 

🔖A day before the government banned the Popular Front of India (PFI) for its alleged links with global terrorist groups, students and teachers from Jamia Millia Islamia University were told that they cannot assemble in and around the campus as section 144 has been imposed in the surrounding area of Okhla in Delhi. 

Read this report by BOOM to find out why Section 144 was imposed in the university. 

🔖 As fact-checkers, we usually see a set of claims that come back almost every year even after being debunked by several fact-checking outlets. Yet, people continue to believe and 'forward' them. 

One such example is: 

Child lifting/ kidnapping rumours. 

This week, a message claiming an increase in child kidnapping cases across Kashmir carried out by a Srinagar-based gang was circulating on WhatsApp and other social media platforms. 

Srinagar Police, in a tweet, clarified that no such incident has come to their notice and urged citizens not to fall prey to false rumours.

Meanwhile, even Mumbai police recently issued a warning against spreading rumours about alleged child kidnapping incidents in the city. 

We have been rigorously conducting LIVE workshops on busting fake news and telling you how to consume media. Check out our existing courses👇

If you have suggestions about this newsletter or want us to conduct workshops on specific topics, drop us a line at 👉 

[email protected]

 and we will get back to you in a jiffy.

Thanks for reading. See you next Saturday 👋