Google just opened up a new front in the battle against misinformation — fact-checking pictures.
The fact checks, gathered from sources Google deems trustworthy, will be embedded in the description of potentially suspect images. They give context and verify claims as true, false, or “partly true.”
In meme-oriam: RIP to our favorite viral fake-outs
Don’t get us wrong, this is a win for truth, the pursuit of knowledge, and all that good stuff. But there may be some tragic casualties. Namely, watching people on the internet forget Photoshop is a thing.
Some iconic fake photo pranks we’ll have to kiss goodbye in the name of fact:
- Jason Derulo falling at every award show ever. It was the Joke That Will Never Die, but Google might have done the impossible and finally killed it.
- This admittedly terrifying photo of a shark swimming on a highway that crops up after every flood, hurricane, or semi-heavy thunderstorm.
- Paris Hilton’s “Stop Being Poor” shirt. It actually read “Stop Being Desperate,” if that makes you feel better.
- The satellite pic of India during Diwali. Cool, but just not true.
