Is it true that in Kyiv they arranged a photo zone depicting a bridge that has collapsed in the United States?

At the end of March 2024, social networks bypassed a photograph allegedly taken on Khreshchatyk shortly after an emergency in the American state of Maryland. We checked the authenticity of this image.

In the picture you can see a girl posing against the background of a photograph of the Francis Scott Ki bridge, stylized under a huge postal brand. On March 26, this bridge is near the American city of Baltimore collapsed After a container ship, which lost control, crashed into one of his supports. Allegedly shot in Kyiv, the photo on the same day began to disperse in the Russian -speaking segment of the network with comments like "The stupids have a holiday again." In October 2022 in Kyiv near the building of the city administration Installed A similar postage brand depicting the moment of the explosion on the Crimean bridge, as a result of which a fragment of the automobile canvas collapsed and several railway tanks with fuel caught fire. The installation has become a popular place for photographing citizens.

The picture was dispersed by Telegram, where it was distributed by such channels as Colonelcassad (307,000 views at the time of writing this analysis), Tynu40k goblina (286 000), "Open Ukraine"(227 000) and"Sheikh Tamir"(147 000).

The collapse of the bridge in Maryland caused a considerable resonance in Russia. In particular, shortly after the Russian-speaking Telegram channels, the news dispersed that captain The container -a -tank bridge was a Ukrainian, and about how a disaster was Rejoice Fighters of the Ukrainian 79th separate landing and screening brigade. Both messages turned out to be false.

In the case of installation in the center of Kyiv, “verified” also could not find a single publication in the Ukrainian media, which would confirm the existence of such a photo zone in March 2024. At the same time, there is no doubt that the photograph is taken near Buildings of the Kyiv city administration in Khreshchatyk.

"Verified" the return on the image and found in the photo bank Getty Images picture, almost identical with spreading over the network. It was done in October 2022 photographer Ed Ram. In the frame - a drawing of the exploding Crimean bridge, stylized under the postage stamp.

As obviously, two pictures differ only in the image on the postage brand. This means only one thing: the original photo of Ed Rama was subjected to digital processing. A picture of the Balticure bridge was added to it, published Early in the morning of March 26, rescue services of the state of Maryland.

The earliest publication with a viral photo that was able to find “verified” appeared on the same day at 12:40 Moscow time in the Telegram channel “Saturator"(15,000 views). This resource positions itself as a “political satire terminator”. Apparently, the edited photograph from the publication of the Satirator, when distributed through other channels, began to be taken seriously by readers (although it would be extremely difficult to have time to set up a new “brand” in front of the Kyiv City Hall after the Cossacks in Maryland).

25 minutes before the "satirator" Telegram channel "Madei. Diving chronicle"(14,000 views) published video With an animated version of the same brand, an even more obvious example of satire, which, however, has become less widespread. Judging by the low quality of the video, it was not the primary source of a similar photo - these are two independent jokes. A few days before, viral It became Image based on the same photo of Ed Rama, only with a photocheted photograph of the Dnieper, which suffered from the Russian missile attack. Thus, it is more appropriate to talk about memes than about a deliberate fake.

Photo on the cover: social networks

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