Satire website clarifies post on Elon Musk’s purported interest in Nigerian girls
By Silas Jonathan
Three days after DUBAWA verified the viral report that claimed “Elon Musk vows to marry a Nigerian girl as he starts hunting for one” the originating website, Danfonation, has clarified that the story was intended as satire.
The post was widely shared on social media and other blogs attracting a tsunami of attention which led DUBAWA to verify and trace its genealogy.
However, after publication, Debo Popoola, the founder of the Danfo Nation, a satirical web publication, clarified that the story was originally published as a satire but unfortunately picked up by other blogs and shared as a real story.
In an email to DUBAWA, Mr Debo said Danfo Nation never intended to spread falsehood.
“The Danfo Nation is a humour and satire web publication and all our contents are fiction. We categorically state this at the end of every published content. Unfortunately, some bloggers have been publishing it without the disclaimer, spreading false news. Our intention is not to spread fake news as you (Dubawa) claimed in your fact-checking publication.”
Further appreciating the work DUBAWA is doing to combat fake news and information disorder, Mr Debo stated that the original content was a satire and not was no meant to mislead or spread false information. He added that all their contents contain a disclaimer which clearly states that “The Danfo Nation is a humour and satire web publication, which may or may not use real names, often in semi-real or mostly fictitious ways. All news articles contained within The Danfo Nation are fiction, and presumably parody news. Any resemblance to the truth is purely coincidental. Advice given is NOT to be construed as professional. If you are in need of professional help, please consult a professional. The Danfo Nation is not intended for children under the age of 18.”
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Tip Of The Week
#FakeNewsAlert
There’s precious little that we can do about the barrage of misinformation that we see daily, but there’s a lot we can do together if we learn to identify suspicious claims in the news and refrain from fuelling the fire by spreading them! Here are our top picks of likely-to-be-false news which [sadly] couldn’t be fact-checked.
New HIV Vaccine with 97% antibody response rate in phase 1 human trials – SOURCE: viral image
A viral image circulating social media makes claims about an alleged HIV vaccine that has a 97% antibody response rate. The vaccine has also been linked to the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine. But how true are these claims?
Questions to ask yourself: Who is the source? How credible is he/she? Which credible platform has published this story? Is there a new HIV Vaccine? What are health experts/organizations saying about it? What has Mordena Vaccine got to do with HIV?
What you should do: Verify the story and do not share the post any further without proper verification.
Other Fact Checks
- Satire website clarifies post on Elon Musk’s purported interest in Nigerian girls
- Sucking a woman’s breast will not reduce her risks of breast cancer
- How true is viral post claiming Elon Musk described Nigerian girls as ‘the best’ and vows to marry one?
- Facebook, WHO launches new campaign against COVID-19 misinformation
- Lai Mohammed’s claim of N100,000 fine for foreign brands’ advertisement is False
- How true is Wike’s claim Rivers State has never allocated less than 30% of its budget to education?
- Do Resident Doctors in the UK and US pay for residency as claimed by Ngige?
