Fake News?

Today we are faced with a flood of fake news and misinformation. How do you tell if the post or article you are reading is true or fake? Here are some examples, can you tell if they are true or fake?

Example 1:
Congenital alopecia is an extremely rare condition where a child is born completely bald. The Malaysian Medical Association recently announced that they are aware of only one reported case in Malaysia diagnosed with this condition. Patient X apparently wore a wig to disguise his baldness as a child and into adulthood. Despite his ailment he went on to become a national water polo champion and prominent figure in the financial sector. When he reached middle age he decided to stop wearing a wig. However, by that time people did not notice he had abandoned his wig because they assumed he had gone bald naturally.

True or fake?

Example 2:
A Malaysian arbitration lawyer was recently included in the Guinness Book of World Records for correctly reciting the entire Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam from memory. Genetic testing of a DNA sample taken from a whiskey shot glass he used while achieving his place in history revealed him to be a blood relative of the famed poet, philosopher and mathematician. Recent genealogical research reveals that Omar Khayyam and the Malaysian lawyer are direct descendants of the same 10th Century Iranian patriarch Ayatollah Pradhanakhayyam. The last name Pradhan in modern day India is an abbreviation of Pradhanakhayyam.

True or fake?

Example 3:
A Malaysian granny who had never painted before in her life achieved instant online fame when she posted a rash of artwork over a two week period. All the artwork she has posted online were inspired by her granddaughter Chloe who had responded to her grandmum’s plaintive “So old, how to learn to paint?” with “Follow youtube lesson, lah. So easy.” Like her idol Banksy, Chloe intends to remain an anonymous artist and is very careful not to reveal her true identity online. Her fans on Tik Tok only recognize her by her hooded anorak.

True or fake?

Example 4:
A Sociology professor has revealed on WhatsApp that his obsession with his penis developed from his accidental circumcision as a child. It seems that the midwife assisting at his birth, while making a notation on his chart about his penis for the doctor, happened to misspell circumference as circumcision. The midwife and doctor have since died under mysterious circumstances. The perpetrator of both these crimes is still at large and is believed to be in Brunei.

True or fake?

Example 5:
The Simon and Garfunkel song Cecilia was inspired when the songwriter Simon’s romantic overtures were rejected by a young Malaysian High School girl. The depth of his despair is evident from the line in the song which reads “I’m down on my knees I’m begging you please to come home.” A reliable source from Rolling Stone magazine attributed Garfunkel’s decision to pursue a solo career to Simon’s battle with depression after his broken heart. To this day Simon becomes morose and violent when he hears his song Cecilia sung by another performer.

True or fake?

Example 6:
The estate of the late Robert Stigwood, the famed producer of the classic disco movie Saturday Night Fever, is reported to be trying to locate a Malaysian female dancer who performed with John Travolta in the famous line dance sequence in the movie. The dancer, known only by her stage name “The Y”, left the movie set soon after the scene was shot to marry a dashing Malaysian actuary and did not collect her wages, which over the years has grown to the princely sum of $21 million. A reward has been offered for any information on her current whereabouts. She is said to be still actively line dancing.

True or fake?