Crowd photos: why the numbers never agree
Every viral crowd photo comes with three conflicting numbers, and the disagreement is not spin — counting people from above is genuinely hard science.
Viral
The clips, posts and audio doing real numbers this week, with the original upload found, the spread mapped and the fakes flagged early.
Engagement bait: anatomy of the hook
'Comment YES if you agree' is not a question — it is a machine that converts your reflex into reach, and it has been platform policy since 2017.
Old clips resold as breaking news
The clip is real, the event is real, and the date is a lie — recycled footage is misinformation's most durable product.
Viral charts that mislead: how to read the axes
Most misleading charts do not lie with numbers — they lie with axes, and you can audit an axis in ten seconds.
Fake giveaway posts, explained
The fake giveaway is a vending machine: your data and engagement go in, a prize that never existed stays in the machine.
The anatomy of a staged viral video
Some 'caught on camera' moments were caught on camera because someone hired the camera — here is how the seams show.