Fact-checking Distorted Images of Raymond Mujuni on social media platforms
Verdict: False’ AI-Generated Images and Defamation
Source: Mutebi Kabaka, Instagram and Facebook
The Claim
Distorted images of Raymond Mujuni are continuously being circulated on different social media platforms. The images are assembled in article format, and in a manner that suggests a layout of the Daily Monitor, but also perhaps “Mutebi Kabaka” being an “affiliate” of the Daily Monitor.
Raymond Mujuni is an investigative journalist and the Head of Current Affairs at Nation Media Group. He is also a governance and international relations expert in Uganda.
Some of the titles say;
.“Is this the end of his career, Raymond Mujuni didn’t know the Microphone was on…This is a sad day for Ugandans,…” and so on.
These articles are being sponsored on social media platforms under the name “Mutebi Kabaka” encouraging people to click a link to receive more information about the topics provided about the two.
When we search for more information about the link provided, it leads to a Facebook platform that seems to have been deleted or does not exist anymore.
After a day, we again tapped the link and it led us here, a website page with a detailed news article. The article also has screenshots and an alleged “transcript” from a show between Raymond Mujuni and Solomon Sserwanja on their “Hard Questions” investigation/political talk show. The exchange between the two moves from Raymond’s alleged arrest to urging people to use their details to earn money from the said platform.
At the bottom of the article are “testaments” of people who claim to have used the services from this platform.
We delved deeper into the website and noticed that it is a pseudo-trading platform that might be used as a means of Phishing; a cyberattack that involves sending fraudulent communications to trick victims into providing sensitive information or installing malware on their devices.
More testaments on the “efficiency” of this platform or scam are given at the bottom of this website from public figures like Hamis Kiggundu, Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu alias Bobi Wine, and Canary Mugume among many others and we employ readers to dismiss them.
It brings us to categorizing those claims as simply click baits with information that could potentially be dangerous for media consumers and Raymond as a target.
In case you encounter the above-sponsored images on your device or social media platforms, be cautious and avoid clicking the link or sharing it with friends or family.
The facts
We checked one of the sponsored clickbait articles on Instagram from the account of “Mutebi Kabaka” to see the target audience of the individual. The target shows the ads are centered to Uganda as a location and the age is set to people ages 25 years and above.
AI-Generated Images
Some of the images being shared in these sponsored Ads are AI-Generated. This is how we came to this conclusion. Using keen observation of the images shared of Raymond Mujuni, there is an immediate distinction to exaggerated features and the environment or surroundings of the image. Other images of the targeted individual are used out of context.
In image 1 above, the prison uniform Raymond is wearing is not “standard” to that of Uganda, which is orange, yellow or white depending on the type of prisoner and all have black vertical strips which the image shared does not have.
Uganda Prisons Services Standard Uniform in Yellow and Orange with Stips
Source: The Journal
The blurred men standing behind him in what seems to be a courtroom, are white which is also different to the court officers, police or attendants in Uganda that are black people. The same inconsistencies can also be seen in image 2. The only proof of Raymond being accused of crime we could find is from “The Observer” where he and another journalist turned politician in 2018, Joel Ssenyoni were accused of stealing handcuffs. However, there is no pictorial proof that they were arraigned in court.
The spread of such misinformation or articles could also be termed as “Defamation”. According to Legal Wise, the meaning of “Defamation is the act of making unlawful false statements by a “defamer” (Person making the statements} about another person( the “defamed” )
Defamation can sometimes be hard to prove and the intention behind the information shared could vary. In the example provided above of the “defamed” it is clear that one of the intentions of using their image by the “defamer” is to source money from unsuspecting people. We should continuously take caution on sharing personal information and following click bait links that could retrieve personal information from them in any kind of way. These claims are false and are defamatory, set to character assassinate the individual mentioned above.
On his X (formerly Twitter) account, Raymond Mujuni debunked these claims in the circulating images with a statement as seen below. He also dismissed the claims further on his Instagram account with a statement and this can be seen here.
Verdict
False; Raymond Mujuni has not been arrested and neither has he encouraged people to use their personal credentials to earn money from any platform as purported by the pseudo website. Disregard the claims made and protect your personal data at all times.