Emma Gonzalez Didn't Actually Rip Up the Constitution, Despite What NRA Supporters Might Think

The hoax was debunked in a tweet by Don Moynihan, a professor at the University of Wisconsin.

On the left, Gonzalez appears to be tearing apart a copy of the Constitution. This image was spread among many gun right advocates, but is actually a doctored version of the photo on the right, taken from a Teen Vogue video which was meant to accompany an op-ed written by Gonzalez.

Here's the original video for comparison:

Apparently, the false image of Gonzalez was one of the top results when Moynihan searched her name on Twitter.

It was originally tweeted by an accounted titled "Linda NRA Supporter" and was retweeted over 65 thousand times. It quickly became clear, however, that "Linda" was no more than a Russian bot hoping to further partisan divisions in the United States.

Moynihan suspected this might be the case.

And even if the 8 digits in "Linda's" handle weren't a dead give-away, Twitter confirmed Moynihan's suspicions shortly thereafter.

Account now suspended. Most likely a bot (the eight digits in the name is a tell apparently - thx @RiffChick). Original post one of the first to come up when under #EmmaGonzalez. Again, things would be a lot easier if @twitter blocked bots in the first place. pic.twitter.com/MFKZpyJZBa

— Don Moynihan (@donmoyn) March 25, 2018

Other news outlets had the same idea as the Russians, however:

Gab, a publication described by The Washington Post as "a popular refuge for the alt-right" also posted a doctored GIF of Gonzalez supposedly ripping up the constitution. They used the same video as their source and, before long, the edited image had received 1.8K retweets and over 3K favorites.

Hours later, long after most users were left to assume the image was real, Gab posted another tweet claiming the GIF was satirical. The clarifying tweet was retweeted a mere 147 times (as of the writing of this article).

This is obviously a parody/satire. You’re all mad because it’s believable, isn’t it? That’s the best type of satire. It’s a comedic reflection of reality.

— Gab: Free Speech Social Network (@getongab) March 25, 2018

Instead of making up lies about the victims of the Parkland shooting, perhaps we should listen to them.

H/T - Mashable, Teen Vogue