Satirical image of 'South Korean first lady at flood cleanup' misleads Facebook users
- This article is more than one year old.
- Published on September 15, 2022 at 09:51
- Updated on September 15, 2022 at 10:29
- 4 min read
- By AFP South Korea
Copyright © AFP 2017-2024. Any commercial use of this content requires a subscription. Click here to find out more.
The image was shared on Facebook here on September 5, 2022 with a Korean-language caption that reads: "Undisclosed photo of Myung-shin doing community service in an area hit by flooding."
Myung-shin is South Korean First Lady Kim Keon-hee's original name.
The image shows a rural area where the ground is littered with broken branches and other debris. Kim, pictured wearing a black jacket and trousers as well as a mask and gloves, appears to be helping to clear up the debris.
Several other people -- whose relationship with Kim and her husband, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, has come under scrutiny -- also appear to be pitching in.
The Hankook Ilbo newspaper reported on the controversy that erupted after a university professor accompanied Kim during her official duties, while The Hankyoreh reported the alleged connection between Yoon and a fortune-teller before he became his party's candidate for president.
The same image was shared alongside similar claims on September 5 on Facebook here and here; as well as on South Korean online forums Clien and Ajji.
It circulated after South Korea was hit by its heaviest rain since weather observations began in August.
At least 11 people died in the record-breaking downpour and flooding, which forced more than 5,300 people to evacuate their homes.
While some users recognised the image had been doctored, comments on the posts indicated that a few users were misled to believe it was genuine.
"I don't think we can call it community service. It looks like they arranged this detestable scene to placate [the public]," wrote one user.
Another said: "They're not even wearing community service clothes. They took the photo just for show."
Satirical forum post
The same image was posted on Ddanzi, a South Korean forum where users are known to share satirical images of political figures, on September 4.
Most of the comments on the post indicated that users understood the image was intended to satirise Kim and her online fan club.
According to local media reports (here and here), the fan club had claimed Kim was pictured in mid-August helping with cleanup efforts in an area affected by flooding.
The picture the fan club referred to appeared in a report by Yonhap News Agency from August 29.
Below is a screenshot comparison of the doctored image shared on Facebook (left) and the photo used in the Yonhap News report (right). Matching features, including a shed and lamp post (1) and piles of debris (2 and 3), have been highlighted by AFP:
The caption on the photo, credited to the National Fire Agency, reads: "Firefighters clean up flood damage."
The reports said the photo was actually taken on August 17 in Buyeo County, South Chungcheong, which is 141 kilometres (88 miles) from the capital Seoul. The area was hit by heavy rain, and the individual that Kim's fan club had claimed was the first lady is a firefighter.
Through a reverse image search on Google, AFP was able to trace the photo of Kim inserted into the altered image to a report by the South Korean news organisation News1 from June 13.
Below is a screenshot comparison of Kim as she appears in the doctored image (left) and the original photo of Kim captured by News1, flipped horizontally (right):
The caption for the News1 photo reads, "President Yoon Seok-yeol's wife Kim Keon-hee places a flower at the grave of former president Roh Moo-hyun in a visit to Bongha Village in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang, on the 13th."
Is there content that you would like AFP to fact-check? Get in touch.
Contact us
