An excerpt from a television interview with US President Joe Biden has been viewed several thousand times on social networks. The publications claim that these images prove that the head of state is in reality wearing a mask, and would therefore be played by an actor.
Shared on Facebook, X (Twitter) or TikTokthese publications state in particular that “the mask is starting to come off, it is visible and we can see the bulge at the chin”.
In the shared footage, we can see the current American president answering questions from journalists. The skin under his chin presents a contrast with the collar of the garment he wears, accentuated by a shadow that traces the outline of his face.
FAKE OFF
It is the lighting of the stage which produces a shadow at the level of Joe Biden’s chin. We can see this by looking at photos that were taken at the same time, showing different points of view. This is particularly the case for the photos taken by photographer Brendan Smialowski, who covered the scene for AFP.
In his various photos, we can see that the president’s face is illuminated by a relatively strong source of white light, in front of him. Which creates the shadow effect in the shared video, accentuated by the relatively tight collar on Joe Biden’s relaxed skin, forming a fold.
Interviewed upon his return from Israel
As indicated by the information on the shared extract, the video is taken from a sequence filmed by the American news channel CNN. Joe Biden was interviewed aboard the presidential plane Air Force One, just returned from Israel on Wednesday November 18.
In the sequence broadcast around 4:30 p.m., the American president speaks about his trip to Israel. Joe Biden argues in particular on the necessity, according to him, of his visit after the Hamas attack of October 7. There complete transcription of the sequence is available online.
Joe Biden replaced by an “actor”, a theory that persists
This video is not an orphan and is part of a conspiracy theory that has followed the American president for some time. Already last April, a video showing the president’s back went viral, considered by conspiracy circles as proof that Joe Biden wears a mask.
Here again, the reality is more to be found in the side of a visual effect on the skin of the president, as demonstrated by the Belgian fact-checking media Knack (here, a high contrast revealing the folds of the skin of the president disproportionately).
As reported by our colleagues from LCI auditors, an interview with Joe Biden on American television in 2021 was also the subject of the same allegations on the fact that the president would be an actor wearing a mask, or would be a deepfake. Here again, and as demonstrated by the press agency Reutersthe effect produced was caused by the lighting of the show.