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PeakMetrics / Fact Checks

Culture & entertainment fact checks

Explore claims publishers have checked about culture & entertainment. Read their original ratings and follow the evidence.

3,169 published reviews in this topic

Fact Crescendo Sri LankaCulture & entertainment

FACT CHECK: පැවදි වූ රංගන ශිල්පී සෝමසිරි අලකොලංග අපවත් වූ පුවත ඇත්තක්ද?

Publisher’s rating: Misleading

The claim concerned social-media posts saying that Somesiri Alakolanga, a veteran actor who had entered the Buddhist clergy and was known as Harispattuwe Somananda Thero, had died. The review says he entered the clergy in 2017 and identifies the death report as the subject of its investigation. To check the report, the publisher looked for coverage in mainstream media and contacted the Galle temple where the monk had entered the clergy, Jayasumanarama Purana Viharaya in Uluvitike. A monk at the temple told the publisher that the death claim was false, and that Somananda had been seriously ill but was recovering after receiving treatment. The review also contacted Alakolanga’s former wife, actor Ramani Alakolanga. She likewise said the report was false, adding that he had recovered from COVID-19 contracted about a month earlier and from a more recent illness, and was then in his usual condition. The review further noted that singer Dayan Witharana had posted that the social-media report was false. Taken together, the direct statements from the temple and his former wife contradict the claim that he had died; the article describes him as recovering, not deceased.

Fact Crescendo Sri LankaCulture & entertainment

FACT CHECK: කෘතියක් සඳහා නීලා වික්‍රමසිංහට ජාත්‍යාන්තර සම්මානයක්?

Publisher’s rating: False

The claim under review was that veteran singer Neela Wickremasinghe had written Slave in a Palanquin and won the John F. Richards Prize for it. The investigation says the post used the singer’s photograph and described her as the book’s author and recipient. It reports that the prize instead went to Professor Neera Wickremasinghe, a different person. The review describes the prize as an award for scholarly work on South Asian history published in English, and says the 2021 recipient was Neera for Slave in a Palanquin: Colonial Servitude and Resistance in Sri Lanka. [S1] To check the identity in the post, the review says it examined the photograph and recognized the person shown as singer Neela, rather than a professor. It then checked information about the prize and identified the American Historical Association as its awarding body. It also compared the award information with the work and its author, reporting that the prize listing named Neera and that Cambridge University Press had published the book online. [S1] The key distinction is therefore not whether the book or prize existed, but whether the singer Neela received the award. The review’s account identifies the recipient as historian Neera and says the misleading post substituted Neela’s name and image. Its conclusion addresses the exact person-and-award claim, rather than disputing that the book received recognition. [S1]

Fact CrescendoCulture & entertainment

សមត្ថភាព​របស់​លោក​តា​​ គឺ​មាន​ពេញ​លេញ​​ 1.តន្រ្តី​​ករ​ដែល​លេង​បាន​ច្រើន​ឧបករណ៍​ 2.អ្នក​ចម្រៀង​ 3.ចេះ​អក្សរ​ភ្លេង​សរសេរ​បទ​ភ្លេង​ 4.និពន្ធ​ទំនុក​ច្រៀង​​ 5.អំណោយ​ផល​ពី​ធម្មជាតិ​​ ចៅ​ៗ​ប្រៀប​មិន​បាន​រោម​ជេីង​​តា​ទេ​​ បេី​សិន​តា​មាន​វត្ត​មាន​លោក​តា​នៅ​រស់​វិញ​​ ចៅ​សុំ​ថេីប​មួយ​ខ្សឺត​

Publisher’s rating: Altered

The post pairs praise for a grandfather’s musical abilities with a photo represented as Sin Sisamuth playing guitar. The review identifies a Facebook post from the page “Da Pleng,” published on August 23, 2021, and describes its caption as listing abilities including playing multiple instruments, singing, writing music and lyrics, and having natural talent. It also notes that a local news site had published the same image with a story about Sin Sisamuth in 2018. The investigation concerns whether the pictured person is actually Sin Sisamuth playing guitar, not whether the caption’s praise is accurate. (S1: “On August 23, 2021, a Facebook page called ‘Da Pleng’ recently posted a photo showing an influential and highly prolific Cambodian singer-songwriter from the 1950s to the 1970s, Sin Sisamuth, playing guitar.”; “the following snapshot captured from Facebook post translated in English as ‘Grandpa’s ability is Full 1. Musicians who play a lot of instruments 2. Singers 3. Know how to write music 4. Write lyrics Singing 5. Favorable by nature’.”; “This has been published on May 23, 2018.”) To check the image, Fact Crescendo says it ran a Google reverse-image search, which led it to an earlier version on Wikimedia Commons. In that original, the person is a white man playing bass guitar, rather than Sin Sisamuth. The review therefore concludes that the circulated image had been altered and does not depict Sin Sisamuth playing guitar. This evidence addresses the photo’s identity and alteration; the excerpt does not report an independent examination of the musical abilities described in the caption. (S1: “Fact Crescendo Cambodia had started to check and verify this photo directly by running a Google Reverse Image search, which brought us to the sources containing the following original photos.”; “An exact photo has been first found on ‘Wikimedia Commons’ which was uploaded on March 31, 2013.”; “This original photo does not show how the Cambodian Golden Voice, Sin Sisamuth, playing guitar at all, but a white man sitting and playing instead.”; “This photo factually does not show Sin Sisamuth playing guitar at all.”)

Vishvas NewsCulture & entertainment

শেহতীয়াকৈ বিভিন্ন ছ’চিয়েল মিডিয়া প্লেটফৰ্মত সুভাষ চন্দ্ৰ বসুৰ এখন ক’লা-বগা ছবি ভাইৰেল হৈ আছে আৰু ইয়াত দাবী কৰা হৈছে যে স্বাধীনতা সংগ্ৰামী সুভাষ চন্দ্ৰ বসুৱে বাতৰি কাকতত বিমান দুৰ্ঘটনাত তেওঁৰ মৃত্যুৰ বাতৰি পঢ়ি আছে।

Publisher’s rating: FALSE

Vishvas NewsCulture & entertainment

বাতৰি ৱেবছাইট জনসত্তাৰ এটা স্ক্ৰীণশ্বট ছচিয়েল মিডিয়াত ভাইৰেল হৈ আছে, শ্বাহৰুখ খানৰ এখন ফটো আৰু শ্বাহৰুখ খানৰ উদ্ধৃতিৰে এক বিবৃতিত দাবী কৰা হৈছে যে শ্বাহৰুখ খানে কয়, “যদি মই আজি এজন চুপাৰষ্টাৰ হওঁ, আটাইতকৈ ডাঙৰ ধন্যবাদ আমাৰ মুছলমান ভাতৃসকলক যিয়ে দৰিদ্ৰ হোৱাৰ পিছতো কেৱল হাম খানৰ ছবি চাইছিল”, যেতিয়া বিশ্বাস নিউজে এই মন্তব্য কৰিছিল।

Publisher’s rating: FALSE