Can you spot the 'fake news' about France?

Local France

22-05-2025

France has become increasingly vocal about calling out Russian interference in the country which
includes - but is not limited to
- spreading fake news stories designed to paint France in a poor light.
Sometimes these are outright falsehoods, and sometimes simply very exaggerated versions of something that has actually happened. Not all of these stories originate in Russia, but they have all been identified as being heavily amplified, especially on social media, by figures linked to Russia.
But because news moves fast while tracking disinformation is a painstaking process, these stories often get picked up by respected media outlets outside France.
In April the
Centre gouvernemental de veille, d'alerte et de réponse aux attaques informatiques
(CERT-FR)
published a report
accusing Russia of 'decades of cyberattacks' against France, ranging from hacking of public and private enterprises to spreading fake news.
Here's a few examples of recent big news stories that have been identified as having a Russian link.
Macron's cocaine train - FAKE
En route for a visit to Ukraine with the British prime minister Keir Starmer and the German chancellor Friedrich Merz, French president Emmanuel Macron was photographed on a train having an informal meeting with his fellow leaders. Pictured on the table was a white object which Russian outlets claimed was a bag of cocaine. The Elysée
said it was in fact a tissue
, and went to the trouble of sharing a close-up version of the original image so that people could see for themselves.
This didn't stop the avalanche of comment on social media, of course. A disinformation tracking service found that the rumour was actually started in France by far-right social media accounts, before it passed to Russian-language accounts and was picked up by senior officials in Moscow. US conspiracy theorists such as Alex Jones, with the large audience he commands, helped amplify the message.
READ ALSO:
Tracking the disinfo on Macron's 'cocaine use'
French bed bug horror - EXAGGERATED
This began life an entirely legitimate news story in French media, reporting that
Parisians had complained of being bitten by bed bugs
in cinemas and on public transport. The cinemas and transport operator RATP pledged to investigate and take pest-control steps if necessary. Paris does, like most large cities,
have something of a bed bug problem
and there have been numerous reports over the last decade of infestations at locations including fancy hotels.
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This time, however, the story exploded and was rapidly picked up by international media who were soon implying that the entire city was infested by bugs and warning people against visiting. Even the mayor of London waded in on the subject, while far-right figures linked the bug infestations to poor hygiene among immigrant populations (factcheck - bed bugs don't care about your country of origin or how often you wash).
Some months later
French intelligence services concluded
that although the story began as a legitimate news item, the rapid spread and distortion was at least in part driven by Kremlin-linked figures.
Europe Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told TF1 television: "The issue of bedbugs was artificially amplified on social networks by accounts that have been established to be of Russian inspiration or origin.
"It was very largely amplified by accounts linked to the Kremlin," he added.
Vomiting Olympic athletes - FAKE
Olympic and Paralympic Games are always political - the host nation uses them to try and show their nation in the best possible light, while detractors play up problems. French ministers had warned in advance that they expected Russian fake news about the Games, and they were not disappointed.
While some stories were real but exaggerated, one completely fake image was widely spread by Russian media. It showed an alleged front page of the French newspaper Libération with a photo of an athlete vomiting after completing the triathlon, alleging that their illness was caused by poor water quality.
The idea of staging the triathlon in the River Seine was a risky one, and the event was postponed by 24 hours because the water quality was not good enough - but in the end
it went ahead and no-one was poisoned
. One athlete who did fall ill after competing later confirmed that she had been treated for an unrelated virus. The
front page image was totally fake
.
Brigitte Macron is transgender - FAKE
Emmanuel Macron's wife Brigitte has been the target of fake news from the moment he was elected in 2017, but the most persistent is that she was born a man named Jean-Michel (in fact Jean-Michel Trogneux is her brother).
The lie has been pushed by French far-right figures but received an international boost in 2024 when a French conspiracy theorist decided to republish their posts on the subject in English. From there it was picked up by the US podcast host Joe Rogan and onwards into American and British media outlets.
Although Russian accounts have enthusiastically shared these stories, the origin of this one appears to be home-grown. In 2024 Brigitte Macron
won a court case against two women
who had made a YouTube video promoting the fake claims.
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Former US first lady Michelle Obama, ex US Vice President and presidential candidate Kamala Harris, New Zealand ex-premier Jacinda Ardern and Begoña Gómez (the wife of Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez) have also been the target of disinformation about their gender or sexuality in a bid to mock or humiliate them.
Rioters released the zoo animals - FAKE
This is a strangely durable piece of fake news that has occurred during several periods of social unrest in France - the allegation that rioters have
released the animals from the Paris zoo
and now there are lions and zebras roaming the streets of the capital. It's usually accompanied by realistic looking (but fake) photos or video.
This resurfaced during the days of rioting that shook France in the summer of 2023. Although these rumours were easily disproved they were part of a tidal wave of disinformation that sloshed around during the week of social unrest that followed the death at the hands of police of a young man named Nahel.
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The 2023 riots themselves obviously did happen - it was the
worst period of social unrest
in the country since the 2005 riots (which also followed deaths involving the police).
They were very serious, and inspired blanket coverage in France and huge interest around the world, as you would expect. However they were also accompanied by
sustained social media campaigns
from British and American far-right figures (amplified by Russian accounts) using the hashtag 'France has Fallen' to link immigration to criminality and rioting. In fact, data from the courts showed that 90 percent of the rioters charged were French.