This Photo Of Stephen King Is Digitally Altered
The Claim
A recent photo shows Stephen King wearing makeup and a free Palestine t-shirt.
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Emerging story
A photo of Stephen King emerged recently allegedly showing him wearing makeup and a free Palestine t-shirt.
Misbar’s Analysis
Misbar investigated the viral claim and found it to be fake. Through reverse image search, Misbar's team found that the photo was digitally altered.
Stephen King Posts A Photo Of Himself In Solidarity With Ukraine
Contrary to the viral claim, Stephen King posted a photo of himself wearing a shirt that says, “I stand with Ukraine,” not Palestine as claimed.
On February 28, 2022, the horror author wrote to his fans: “I don't usually post pictures of myself, but today is an exception.”
As it could be noted, the photo posted two years ago by King matches the viral photo in question. The two images share the same background with a large bookshelf, and the rest of King’s outfit and facial expression are the same.
This viral photo was digitally altered. Makeup and lipstick were added to the photo and the shirt was also edited with a shirt holding a design of solidarity with Palestine and a fist that could be found online on Pixels.
Although the altered photo fooled a lot of people, there are some faults with the editing upon looking closely. On the left side, the green line on the shirt overlaps with King’s hand. The design on the shirt also seems utterly flat and no waves could be seen, suggesting that the design was just added to the shirt using software editing programs.
Although King has not posted a photo of himself wearing a free Palestine t-shirt, he did once comment on the Gaza war on X, when Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene posted in November 2022 that America has not spent any dollars on the war yet. In response, Stephen King quoted Greene’s post saying: “Are you tripping? We've given them aid and armaments for decades.”
Celebrities Standing With Palestine During Gaza War
A number of celebrities and movie stars have expressed their solidarity with Palestine during the Israeli genocide war against Gaza, including Oscar winner Susan Sarandon and Scream star Melissa Barrera.
One of the celebrities who talked about the Gaza war since the beginning and still talking about it is the award-winning actor, Mark Ruffalo. On his X account, followed by 8 million, Ruffalo calls for a ceasefire and calls the U.S. government to stop sending weapons to Israel.
Ruffalo along with actor Ramy Youssef, Billie Eilish, her brother Finneas O’Connell, and others wore red pins representing Artists4Ceasefire in the major entertainment event, which took place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California on March 10, 2024, five months into the genocide war against the Palestinians in Gaza. Currently, Ruffalo is posting on the pro-Palestine protests in the U.S. and sharing the news.
The Oscar winner, Jonathan Glazer, was also one of those who spoke out for Palestine. As he delivered his prepared remarks on stage at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Glazer, who is Jewish, said: “We stand here as men who refute their Jewishness and the Holocaust being hijacked by an occupation which has led to conflict for so many innocent people.”
Those who spoke out and expressed their solidarity are in fact doing it while putting their profession and reputation at stake. From Melissa Barrera who was dropped from the Scream franchise for describing the Gaza war as genocide to Sara Sarandson who was dropped by the United Talent Agency following her appearance at a pro-Palestinian rally in New York, many celebrities faced accusations of anti-Semitism and the backlash of their fans for condemning the Genocide.
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