(C) Wisconsin Watch

(C) Wisconsin Watch
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How Wisconsin Watch debunked a false national headline [1]

['Rachel Hale', 'Wisconsin Watch', 'More Rachel Hale', 'Reporting Intern']

Date: 2024-01-29 12:00:00+00:00

Reading Time: < 1 minute

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Amid the Israel-Hamas war, misinformation has spread rampantly on college campuses. One particular moment on the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s campus created a social media firestorm after a false claim regarding a pro-Palestinian rally reached over 2.8 million views on Twitter.

In the post, a user inaccurately described protesters in a video clip as chanting “glory to the murders.” In fact, they were chanting “glory to the martyrs.”

Related Story Did pro-Palestine demonstrators at UW-Madison chant “glory to the murders?” No. A video taken by a Wisconsin Watch reporter confirmed that the protesters were chanting “glory to the martyrs.”

Replies to the more sensationalistic tweet spread like wildfire in the following hours. The claim was picked up by news outlets including Fox News and the New York Post, which ran with headlines that UW-Madison refused to “condemn pro-Hamas demonstrations chanting ‘Glory to the murders.’” Since October, neither news organization has amended its misleading headline.

I happened to be crossing Library Mall on the way to class when the Madison for Palestine rally happened. I took video of the demonstration because as a journalism student, the situation provided an opportunity to practice my field reporting. When I saw the viral tweet, I realized my longer clip provided a clearer account of the leader’s instructions to the crowd. The word “murders” was clearly “martyrs.”

“It’s gonna be a call and response. When I say, ‘Glory to the martyrs,’ you say, ‘Glory to the resistance.’ When I say, ‘We will liberate the land,’ you say, ‘By any means necessary,’ ” a leader said to the crowd.

This correction, which checked misinformation in real time, is the kind of journalism Wisconsin Watch’s partnership with Gigafact was created to boost. Our fact briefs aim to check unsupported claims and dubious information with credible sources, helping readers discern the truth.

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If we send you a request to change or remove Wisconsin Watch content from your site, you must agree to do so immediately. *** Also, the code below will NOT copy the featured image on the page. You are welcome to download the main image as a separate element for publication with this story. *** You are welcome to republish our articles forusing the following ground rules. For questions regarding republishing rules please contact Coburn Dukehart, associate director, at [email protected] How Wisconsin Watch debunked a false national headline <h1>How Wisconsin Watch debunked a false national headline</h1> by Rachel Hale / Wisconsin Watch, Wisconsin Watch January 29, 2024 Amid the Israel-Hamas war, misinformation has spread rampantly on college campuses. One particular moment on the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s campus created a social media firestorm after a false claim regarding a pro-Palestinian rally reached over 2.8 million views on Twitter. In the post, a user inaccurately described protesters in a video clip as chanting “glory to the murders.” In fact, they were chanting “glory to the martyrs.” Replies to the more sensationalistic tweet spread like wildfire in the following hours. The claim was picked up by news outlets including <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/university-wisconsin-refuses-condemn-pro-hamas-demonstrators-chanting-glory-murders">Fox News</a> and the <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/10/14/university-of-wisconsin-wont-condemn-pro-hamas-protesters/">New York Post</a>, which ran with headlines that UW-Madison refused to “condemn pro-Hamas demonstrations chanting ‘Glory to the murders.’” Since October, neither news organization has amended its misleading headline. I happened to be crossing Library Mall on the way to class when the Madison for Palestine rally happened. I took video of the demonstration because as a journalism student, the situation provided an opportunity to practice my field reporting. When I saw the viral tweet, I realized my longer clip provided a clearer account of the leader’s instructions to the crowd. The word “murders” was <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/u/2/d/1nyZj24AfifuUtacfNHvBehmWip1BJcM_/view?usp=sharing">clearly “martyrs.”</a> “It’s gonna be a call and response. When I say, ‘Glory to the martyrs,’ you say, ‘Glory to the resistance.’ When I say, ‘We will liberate the land,’ you say, ‘By any means necessary,’ ” a leader said to the crowd. This correction, which checked misinformation in real time, is the kind of journalism Wisconsin Watch’s partnership with Gigafact was created to boost. Our fact briefs aim to check unsupported claims and dubious information with credible sources, helping readers discern the truth. This <a target="_blank" href="https://wisconsinwatch.org/2024/01/wisconsin-israel-palestinian-hamas-university-madison-twitter-false-claim/">article</a> first appeared on <a target="_blank" href="https://wisconsinwatch.org">Wisconsin Watch</a> and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.<img src="https://i0.wp.com/wisconsinwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/cropped-WCIJ_IconOnly_FullColor_RGB-1.png?fit=150%2C150&quality=100&ssl=1" style="width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;"><img id="republication-tracker-tool-source" src="https://wisconsinwatch.org/?republication-pixel=true&post=1286619&ga4=G-D2S69Y9TDB" style="width:1px;height:1px;"> Copy to Clipboard

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[1] Url: https://wisconsinwatch.org/2024/01/wisconsin-israel-palestinian-hamas-university-madison-twitter-false-claim/

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