Thread by @BenDoBrown

Video games pop up in the coverage of global conflicts.

This ongoing thread shows the power of an image-reverse search & value of the community that identifies this stuff

Here is one from #Arma3 claiming it is a real event (been popping up a lot in Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

There's a specific tendency to show Arma3 videos with tracer rounds. That appears to get more retweets.

Here was another instance from January this year when people were claiming the US had shot down Iranian missiles.

Nope - Arma3 again.

https://twitter.com/BenDoBrown/status/1215171053837680641?s=20

Here is a tweet with almost 2k retweets claiming it is a real video. It's another video game.

This is the same video that @bellingcat had identified as the AC130 Gunship Simulator after it was used by @mod_russia 😶 (bellingcat.com/news/mena/2017…)

https://twitter.com/BenDoBrown/status/1215176188626292736?s=20

Here is another one from Libya - when there was scant footage of the bombing of Al Watiya Airbase.

What better than to run simulation footage and claim it is real.

https://twitter.com/BenDoBrown/status/1280084203200184321?s=20

My favorite one of all was the footage of 'Turkish aircraft planning to attack Libyan army positions'.

This time it wasn't a video game - it's actually a US navy UFO video 🛸

https://twitter.com/BenDoBrown/status/1281238029340901382?s=20

Here's also a Russian TV news package using a cheeky bit of Arma 2 footage in its report. H/T @Oded121351 for that one. Link:

https://twitter.com/Oded121351/status/1280138814506373127?s=20

A four-minute film of militia in Tripoli in 2018 was actually a modded version of GTA 5 🧐

https://twitter.com/Oded121351/status/1044579714650820608?s=20

Image: 'Extremists near Aleppo received several truckloads of chemical ammo'.... From the game Command & Conquer.

https://twitter.com/RussianEmbassy/status/730701444823826432?s=20

RT interview with a former child soldier from South Sudan. Rather than using a real image, someone thought it might be a good idea to show a clip from Metal Gear Solid during an interview. dailymotion.com/video/x21oyhw

For those that made it this far, aside from the cheer, there is a serious note to keep an eye out for simulation footage in conflicts. I'll keep them updated here 👀

The most common one I have seen is the CIWS Phalanx from #Arma3 (link: )

ITV documentary from 2011 on the IRA - featuring footage from Arma2 (). H/T to @TheCyberViking for sharing this one.

https://twitter.com/TheCyberViking/status/1321491120895987713?s=20

An example on Egyptian TV from 2015 on 'Russian strikes against ISIS' - feat Apache: Air Assault. They even left the gaming channel's watermark on the right side of the screen 😶 H/T @fighterxwar for this one.
Article with video links: washingtonpost.com/news/worldview…