Being released by a US entity, it is easy for many to assume that the cases were from US companies. But that was not the case - "When asked about the research that went into making the video, First Media provided a list of links for each clip. Eleven of the 16 were from a mix of Indian sources relating to alleged food scandals in the country; from the urbane Instagram influencers of New Delhi to national newspapers and rural TV channels. One, relating to red dye on sweet potatoes, came from the official food standards authority in India. "
While the author's claim good intent in increasing awareness, it does show how fast fake news can be distributed, and if well produced, it can be quite convincing.
NewStatesman
https://www.newstatesman.com/science-tech/social-media/2019/06/how-spurious-food-safety-claims-reached-audience-almost-90-million
How spurious food safety claims reached an audience of almost 90 million in a few days
Viral misinformation is going global in the relentless pursuit of clicks, a problem which experts are increasingly concerned is a feature, not a bug, of social media platforms.
By Alastair Reid
6 June 2019
Food videos have become a staple of social media. Picture-perfect sandwiches piled high with impossibly arranged fillings, huge vats of cheesy, creamy pasta, and slow-motion shots of sauces drooling like Homer Simpson: all are only ever a click and a swipe away, and can be hugely profitable.
A video published on Saturday 1 June had these hallmarks for social media success, then added another layer of virality.
“Rice is mixed with plastic bits to increase manufacturer profit!” read the subtitles as the camera zooms in on a frying pan in which tiny rice-like grains turn translucent with the heat.
“Ice cream that bubbles contains washing powder for shine and lightness,” reads another caption as a well-manicured hand squeezes lemon juice over the offending dessert.
In total, the video shows 16 of these “tests” for “fake” food, most featuring a side-by-side shot to give examples of which are “good” or “bad”. Another sees a well-manicured hand empty what the video purports to be baby food into a zip-lock bag. The bag is flattened and evened before a series of fast cuts show a magnet being pulled across the paste, dragging tiny black dots in its wake. “These are ground-up rocks advertised as fortified calcium!” screams the text.
Others allege that pure tea does not stain but “fake” tea will – tell that to any Brit who’s spilled a cuppa – or encourage viewers to set fire to their spices to see if they burn (“pure” spices will catch light, apparently).
By Sunday afternoon, the video had been viewed more than 40 million times on Facebook. By Thursday it was 87 million. More than 500,000 reactions, 216,000 comments and over 3,000,000 shares. By almost any metric it’s a viral media smash hit.
Yet almost none of the claims made in the video have any scientific backing.
“A lot of the claims that are being made [would be] highly illegal in the United States and they would come with penalties,” says Pete Cassell, a spokesman at the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). “Our food is inspected and monitored and if these kind of things were happening we would know about it and we would take action against a company that was doing something like this.”
The full, three-and-a-half minute video was published by First Media, a Los Angeles-based production house, and published to the verified Facebook page of Blossom, its brand aimed at young women and mothers.
This is not some shady fake news fringe site, but an established company with its own TV channel and viral marketing arm for major brands like Tinder and Pepsi. In 2018 First Media was a finalist in the revered Shorty Awards, nominated for its Facebook presence in the “instructional video” category.
Rest of article
https://www.newstatesman.com/science-tech/social-media/2019/06/how-spurious-food-safety-claims-reached-audience-almost-90-million
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