Yes, you read that right.
In the age of social media, news and videos are shared by hundreds and thousands of people. This is just regular day's work. But this news was different.
Dipa Karmakar qualified in the artistic gymnastics event at Rio 2016 after putting up a strong show at the final qualifying and Rio Games test event in Rio de Janerio.
From Tripura, we have a gymnast who made the country proud in gymnastics. We are proud of the 22-year-old who has made their mark in this exclusive sport.
But wait, this is misleading
She is not the first Indian gymnast to qualify for the Olympics. She is the first female gymnast to qualify for the same, though.
Her qualification spread like wildfire and pleased people across all social media platforms. But it was put in a wrong context.
The last participation by India in gymnastics at Olympics was way back in 1964, but during that time, there was no qualification system in place.
Till date, 11 Indian male gymnasts have competed in the Olympics – two in 1952, three in 1956 and six in 1964.
| Year | Host Cities | Gymnasts from India |
| 1952 | Helsinki | 2 |
| 1956 | Melbourne | 3 |
| 1964 | Tokyo | 6 |
Here are a few misleading tweets:
Social Media: Not again
The lack of credible information from official sources was one of the prime reasons why this news spread like wildfire over social media.
Social media extend the reach of false information and incorrect assumptions, just as they do with true information and correct assumptions.
Misinformation can spread quickly on social media. Each second exposing it to wider audiences.
It is this social media herd mentality that needs to be put in check.
