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StinkyJournalism Media Picks
animals-Listing filtered by Topic
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AP Fake News Holiday Treat: Elephants vs. Humans Eating Contest
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| by Rhonda Roland Shearer, StinkyJournalism.org |
July 04, 2009
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| AP's fake news and holiday filler--the "first-ever" Elephants vs. Humans Eating Contest--generated tons of web traffic (and corresponding profits) for news companies. |
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It was a shameless publicity stunt and cross-marketing bonanza. The problem was Associated Press went along for ride (or should I say web clicks?).
The Major League Eating and Ringling Bros.and Barnum & Bailey circus--three elephants vs. three humans--hot dog bun-eating contest was covered by AP as if it were legitimate news. I mean, was there ever any doubt of who would win?
The AP photo caption reads (I bolded the companies promoted)...Go to full story
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Fatal! Racoon-Transmitted Infection!
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| NY Daily News Readers Accuse Paper of Spreading Panic Over Rare Disease |
| by Danielle Mastropiero, StinkyJournalism.org |
May 11, 2009
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| New York Daily News' readers wrote in droves to complain about the paper's sensationalism and errors in their recent report about a "raccoon ringworm" [sic]. The problem? First of all it is a roundworm--not a ringworm. Worse, the chances you or I would catch it are close to nil. (Photo Credit:Great Beyond, Creative Commons) |
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A recent article by the New York Daily News on a little-known disease spread by raccoons left some readers rabid over missing information.
The May 3 story was about “Raccoon Ringworm,” however, the disease is actually called “Raccoon Roundworm.” Ringworm is a common fungal infection while roundworm is a less common infestation by nematodes. The Daily News eventually corrected their mistake but did not notify readers of this change.
The...Go to full story
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Citizens Now More Savvy About Fauxtography:
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| Giant Snake Hoax Photos Hit Immediate Wall of Disbelief |
| by Rhonda Roland Shearer, StinkyJournalism.org |
February 23, 2009
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| Here is one of two fake photos of a giant snake recently circulating on the web. People have learned that "too good to be true" photos found in their email in-boxes sent from friends or in the pages of mainstream media outlets or blogs may be photoshopped or staged. Fortunately citizens have learned that skepticism is a sound daily tool used by savvy media consumers. |
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The most recent extreme scary animal photos published by bloggers and mainstream media was almost instantly identified as a hoax in a FOX News headline. Probably not coincidentally, these new fake images follow the early February 2009 well circulated announcement in the science journal Nature of a giant one ton snake fossil that was discovered in a coal mine in Columbia, South America.
By February 19-20, reports of a living one ton monster "suddenly"...Go to full story
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Man ALMOST Attacked By Pit Bull Is News?
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| by Danielle Mastropiero, Stinky Journalism.org |
January 29, 2009
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| The news media reported that Arthur Maestas, of Rubidoux, Calif. was approached... but not bitten by a dog. The headline screamed "Rubidoux man cites divine intervention in surviving pit bull attack." Meantime,from the headline a citizen would never know that the victim in this case did not have one tooth mark or even some torn clothing. The pit bull menace story is so good that an attack that never happened is good enough for news headlines if configured right. In this case "divine intervention" saved the man from a non-existent event. |
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WHAT ATTACK? Note: The map that accompanied the Press-Enterprise story states : "Pit Bull Attack"
The media in Riverside County, California seems to be determined to get as much mileage out of the mauling death of a 60 year old man last month by reporting about a man who "almost" got attacked by a pit bull five days...Go to full story
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Profiling is Alive and Well in the Dog World
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| by Danielle Mastropiero, StinkyJournalism.org |
January 16, 2009
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| DO THESE TWO DOGS LOOK ALIKE? AP falsely reported that a "pit bull" killed a man in California. See the dog on the left. It is a Neapolitan Mastiff. A generic pit bull is on the right. An animal control officer told Stinky Journalism that it was a "Neapolitan Mastiff" that attacked the man--not a pit bull. Inaccurate reports, such as this one by the AP, distort the public's perception about the pit bull breed. The real risks to the public are lost in the sensational headlines. |
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Once again, pit bulls are the target of slow news day filler. On December 19, Gerald Adelmund, 60, of Riverside, California was reported by the Associated Press (AP) to have been mauled to death by his two "pit bulls." Several details of the case went unreported.
For starters, StinkyJournalism.org was told only one dog attacked. According to the Riverside County Animal Control office, it was "a Neapolitan Mastiff" not a pit bull or pit bull... Go to full story
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Ah oh. South China Tiger Photo Faker let out of jail -now says fauxtographs real
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| by Rhonda Roland Shearer, StinkyJournalism.org |
December 22, 2008
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| After confessing and being spared prison, South China Tiger photo forger now says his fauxtographs are real |
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A Chinese judge may be sorry now for showing mercy to the convicted photo forger, Zhou Zhenglong.
Zhou apologized in Court for placing a cardboard image of the rare China tiger in the woods to fake his photos, but he now wrote, after receiving a suspended jail sentence, that the photos were authentic.
Reuters reported, "A saga in China about a farmer nearly jailed over photos he took of a critically endangered tiger that were later...Go to full story
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"China Tiger" Fauxtographer Spared Prison
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| by Rhonda Roland Shearer, StinkyJournalism.org |
November 24, 2008
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| The police held the poster farmer Zhou used to stage his fake photo. |
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Zhou, a farmer and now famed Chinese Fauxtographer won't be going to jail after all.
Welt Online reported, "Last October, he emerged from the woods in Shaanxi with his claim of a tiger sighting, plus dozens of digital photos. His claim was immediately embraced by officials in Shaanxi, who awarded him 20,000 yuan (about US$2,920) and much praise at a press conference little more than a week later."
Reuters reported, " Zhou,...Go to full story
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It's a Rottweiler Photo; Not a Pit Bull !
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| Media sensationalism leads to inaccuracy about dog attacks |
| by Rhonda Roland Shearer, StinkyJournalism.org |
November 11, 2008
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| KRMG mistakenly used a Rottweiler dog to illustrate a story about a pit bull attack. Why does the press frequently misidentify non-pit bull dog breeds as "pit bulls"? |
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The KRMG Local News AP headline blares--“Woman mauled by large pit bull'-- in Tulsa, Oklahoma, October 30, 2008. A photo of a black and brown dog's head accompanied the story. The problem was the shelter described the dog that attacked as "white and brown"? A further problem was that the dog depicted in the photo, wasn't a pit bull, but a Rottweiler. StinkyJournalism has previously reported on this ongoing media error . The press often sees "mean...Go to full story
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How-To Make a "Rare South China Tiger" Fake Photo:
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| A do-it-yourself guide |
| by Rhonda Roland Shearer |
September 30, 2008
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| Who needs Photoshop? Here is a 6 step, low-tech method, for making your own fake rare Tiger photo, right in the comfort of your own home! |
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The NetEase, 163.com article, is in Chinese, but you'll understand. The images are a step by step how-to-guide where you, at home, can fake a photo without using photoshop.
It may seem like a hokey, low-tech technique, but this fakery approach worked well for quite a while. The fauxtographer , Zhou Zhenglong, won prizes and even had his fake photo published in the prestigious Science magazine... until a botanist, Fu Dezhi, noted that the leaves were too big and out-of-scale... Go to full story
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Photo Forger Caged for Faking Tiger Fauxtograph
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| by OMG |
September 29, 2008
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| The Xunyang County People's Court fined Zhou Zhenglong 2,000 yuan (about
292 U.S. dollars) while sentencing him to prison for 2 1/2 years. |
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OMG wrote, " Zhou Zhenglong, the farmer who shocked the country with his fake photo of the endangered South China tiger, was sentenced to two and a half years in prison on Saturday in northwest China's Shaanxi Province."
Also see: Man Jailed For Tiger Pics
» more
... Go to full story
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