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Manipulated video falsely claiming 'proof' Biden has dementia 'viewed 1 million times'

Edited clip appeared on Twitter over the weekend

Matt Mathers
Monday 02 November 2020 15:53 GMT
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Biden V Trump: US election opinion polls

A manipulated video falsely touted as "proof" Joe Biden has dementia was reportedly viewed more than one million times on Twitter over the weekend.

A user uploaded a doctored clip to the platform showing the Democratic nominee announcing himself on stage at a campaign rally.

"Hello, Minnesota!" the former vice president said in the footage. But his podium showed a sign that read "Tampa, Florida," along with the message "Text FL to 30330".

But the original, unedited video was filmed in St Paul's, Minnesota where Mr Biden had been campaigning ahead of election day.

The video was uploaded to Twitter by a person who accused Mr Biden of forgetting what state he was in, CNN reported.

One version of the video circulating on Twitter had been viewed more than 1 million times before it was taken down, according CNN.

Twitter on Sunday labelled the content as "manipulated media" and the user later removed it.

The Independent has contacted the Twitter for comment.

Throughout the election campaign, team Trump and his supporters have frequently pedalled videos of Mr Biden appearing to "slip up" or forget things to push a narrative that he is "mentally shot" or has dementia.

Mr Biden does not have dementia, according to his medical team.

He has, however, "slipped up" or misspoke on occasions during the campaign - as has president Trump.

Public speaking forms a large proportion of a politician's job - especially those who run for the US presidency.

The sheer scale of public speaking engagements both candidates are expected to participate in means that they will sometimes make mistakes, whether that is citing incorrect figures or getting words mixed up.

For example, Mr Tump last week told a rally he would "vanquish" a coronavirus vaccine. He probably meant to say vanquish the virus.

Having said that, the president has consistently made false or misleading claims throughout his time in office.

He has made over 20,000 of them since assuming office in 2017, according to a Washington Post analysis.

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