This photo of former US President Donald Trump is making the rounds on social media as part of the Ukraine war.
The shot is said to show Trump in a limousine marked with the Latin letter “Z” like a Russian tank.
The ex-president, who is considered to be a Putin admirer, made several controversial statements in connection with the conflict in Eastern Europe.
But is the photo actually real?
The photo of Trump sitting in a limousine marked with a “Z” is a fake.
The original picture without the letter shows the ex-president leaving Trump Tower in New York City on March 9, 2021 – months before the start of the war.
Although the letter “Z” is used in Russian propaganda, tanks, military vehicles, and artillery are actually marked with it for a practical reason.
The weapon arsenals of the Russian and Ukrainian troops are very similar. The marking is intended to prevent confusion.
In addition to the “Z”, variants and other letters are also used for the markings.
The case shows how easily manipulated photos can be distributed in the context of current events. An unspectacular photo of an ex-US president becomes fuel for political discussions on social media.
How do we check videos for manipulation in the editorial office? It is important to look at the details. The individual frames of a video often reveal whether a video has been edited. We take a close look at each image and enlarge individual sections. Indications of a fake are, for example: lack of motion blur, unnatural shadows or editing errors. The general rule at stern is: Seriousness before speed. We always double-check facts and material thoroughly before publishing them. For this we work with the cross-editorial “Team Verification” together with RTL, NTV, RTL2, Radio NRW.