{"id":111140,"date":"2021-04-01T22:39:21","date_gmt":"2021-04-01T22:39:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fin2me.com\/?p=111140"},"modified":"2021-04-01T22:39:21","modified_gmt":"2021-04-01T22:39:21","slug":"fact-check-fake-kent-state-gun-girl-quote-likely-an-altered-image-of-a-real-tweet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fin2me.com\/business\/fact-check-fake-kent-state-gun-girl-quote-likely-an-altered-image-of-a-real-tweet\/","title":{"rendered":"Fact check: Fake Kent State ‘gun girl’ quote likely an altered image of a real tweet"},"content":{"rendered":"

The claim: Conservative\u00a0figure Kaitlin Bennett tweeted about incest<\/h2>\n

Social media users are sharing a\u00a0fake quote\u00a0purporting to show that conservative media personality Kaitlin Bennett tweeted about incest. The fake quote is spreading as an altered image of a real tweet.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt least I can procreate with my dad,\u201d reads the altered image.<\/p>\n

Bennett has been a controversial figure since she went viral for carrying a semi-automatic around the Kent State University campus following her 2018 graduation. She has since garnered the nickname “gun girl” and become a conservative media personality.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Several posters told USA TODAY they shared the image because they\u00a0believed the tweet was authentic.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m lead to believe it was a real tweet,\u201d user Rene Turbios wrote to USA TODAY in a Facebook message.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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USA TODAY could not trace who first posted the fake quote.\u00a0<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Kent State University graduate, Kaitlin Bennett, 22, caused a stir on social media with her photo, in which she is seen walking on campus, while carrying an AR-10 long rifle on her back.<\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

Bennett shared a similar tweet after a Twitter feud with rapper Lil Nas X<\/h2>\n

The fake quote is likely an altered image of a\u00a0tweet\u00a0Bennett shared on March 29. \u201cAt least I can procreate,\u201d read the real tweet.<\/p>\n

This came a day after Bennett engaged in a Twitter feud with\u00a0recording artist Lil Nas X over his controversial \u201cMONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)\u201d music video.\u00a0The confrontation included several insults between Nas X, who is gay, and Bennett about each of their relationships with their fathers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

An advanced search of Bennett\u2019s Twitter profile shows no trace of the purported tweet.\u00a0There is no record of the claimed tweet in archived webpages of Bennett\u2019s Twitter profile.<\/p>\n

Bennett\u2019s media outlet, Liberty Hangout, did not reply to a request for comment.\u00a0<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Kaitlin Bennett, who gained notoriety for posing on the Kent State University campus with a rifle for her graduation photos, joins over a hundred people gathered at the Capitol courtyard for the Big Pro Gun Rally on Saturday, July 28, 2018.  (Photo: Joe Rondone\/Democrat)<\/span><\/p>\n

Image forensics suggests the image was altered<\/h2>\n

Close inspection of the image containing the fake quote\u00a0suggests it was altered from a screenshot of Bennett’s March 29 tweet.\u00a0The words \u201cwith my dad\u201d appear in a slightly different color and size than \u201cAt least I can procreate.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

USA TODAY used InVID\u2019s image forensic analysis tool to inspect the image for potential tampering. The JPEG Ghosts algorithm highlighted the \u201cwith my dad\u201d phrase in yellow, indicating that it was likely taken from another image.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe JPEG Ghosts algorithm is based on recompressing the image in multiple different qualities and subtracting each of them from the original,” InVID says in explaining how the algorithm detects tampering. “The resulting difference images are post-processed to highlight regions that stand out and are likely to originate from a different JPEG image.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Our rating: False<\/h2>\n

We rate a fake quote\u00a0purporting to show that conservative media personality Kaitlin Bennett tweeted about incest as\u00a0FALSE,\u00a0based on our research. There is no record of the quote on Bennett’s Twitter profile, where the altered image\u00a0claims the statement was made.\u00a0Image forensics\u00a0suggests the fake quote is the result of alteration, likely involving an authentic tweet Bennett did post on March 29.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Our fact-check sources:<\/h2>\n