{"id":124068,"date":"2021-05-06T21:46:25","date_gmt":"2021-05-06T21:46:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/precoinnews.com\/?p=124068"},"modified":"2021-05-06T21:46:25","modified_gmt":"2021-05-06T21:46:25","slug":"fact-check-no-bill-gates-didnt-purchase-the-encrypted-messaging-app-telegram","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/precoinnews.com\/business\/fact-check-no-bill-gates-didnt-purchase-the-encrypted-messaging-app-telegram\/","title":{"rendered":"Fact check: No, Bill Gates didn’t purchase the encrypted messaging app Telegram"},"content":{"rendered":"

The claim: Bill Gates purchased the\u00a0messaging app Telegram<\/h2>\n

When it comes to being the target of viral misinformation, Bill Gates\u00a0is a frequent flyer.\u00a0<\/p>\n

We’ve debunked false claims about Gates that involved allegations he was using vaccine research to microchip recipients, planned the COVID-19 pandemic\u00a0and was conducting research to block out the sun, among others.<\/p>\n

Now, social media users have falsely claimed Gates purchased\u00a0Telegram, a popular messaging app among far-right extremists,\u00a0to accuse Gates of censorship.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cBill Gates has just purchased the Telegram app in order to retain control of what information people can share, think and research,\u201d reads an image posted to Facebook on April 6.<\/p>\n

Fact check: <\/strong>Fact check: Image of Saturn is an artist’s rendering, not an up-close photo<\/span><\/p>\n

The image appears to be a screenshot of another Facebook post, although the original poster\u2019s name and the post date\u00a0are\u00a0obstructed. The post also includes an image of a Fox News report with correspondent Trace Gallagher\u00a0and an altered chyron that reads \u201c600 MILLION DOLLARS\u00a0DEAL BILL GATES BUYS TELEGRAM.\u201d<\/p>\n

The post\u00a0also\u00a0claims that Gates owns the most farmland in the USA, references Microsoft’s\u00a01998 antitrust lawsuit\u00a0and shares a\u00a0link to a YouTube video of Gates’ 1998 deposition for that case.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the man who was found guilty of attempting to (sic) monopolise the internet (sic) brower market in 1998,\u201d claims the post.\u00a0<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

In this file photo taken on September 26, 2018 Bill Gates and his wife Melinda Gates introduce the Goalkeepers event at the Lincoln Center in New York.  (Photo: LUDOVIC MARIN, AFP via Getty Images)<\/span><\/p>\n

It is true that\u00a0Gates and his wife own\u00a0the most farmland in the U.S. and that Microsoft was found guilty of illegal business practices, but we’ll focus our attention on the Telegraph claim. That one has no basis in reality.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Bill Gates, chairman and CEO of Microsoft, left, talks to Ballmer on July 21, 1998, in Redmond, Wash. Gates appointed Ballmer to the position of president of Microsoft. (Photo: Jeff Christensen, AP)<\/span><\/p>\n

The Facebook user that posted the claim did not respond to USA TODAY\u2019s request for comment.<\/p>\n

Telegram confirms it hasn\u2019t been purchased by Gates<\/h2>\n

A Telegram spokesman said the company has not been sold.<\/p>\n

Remi Vaughn, press and media relations spokesperson for Telegram, directed USA TODAY\u00a0to several statements published by Reuters in April.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cTelegram remains fully owned by Pavel Durov,” Telegram told Reuters.<\/p>\n

Fact check:<\/strong>\u00a0Context missing from claim Biden might cancel July 4 if people don’t get COVID vaccinations<\/span><\/p>\n

In a December post to his own channel, Durov wrote that he would not sell the app and planned to maintain its independence. In March, Durov announced Telegram made more than $1 billion through bond sales.<\/p>\n

In April, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation told Reuters and AFP that the claim was false.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Pavel Durov (Photo: Nadine Rupp \/ Getty Images)<\/span><\/p>\n

The original image shows Fox didn\u2019t report Gates bought Telegram<\/h2>\n

The Fox News screenshot used in the post\u00a0\u00a0was altered. The original image was pulled\u00a0from a Nov. 16 broadcast of \u201cAmerica\u2019s Newsroom.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gallagher\u2019s tie, facial expression and the pattern on the television set behind him indicate the screengrab was taken about 2 seconds in this clip of the broadcast.<\/p>\n

Fact check:<\/strong>\u00a0Nikki Haley didn’t ‘white-wash’ her name. It’s Punjabi<\/span><\/p>\n

The original chyron read, \u201cCELEBRITIES PUSH BACK AGAINST \u2018CANCEL CULTURE,\u2019\u201d and showed a promotional image for a Fox broadcast set to air that night. The edited chyron replaced that image with one of Gates.<\/p>\n

AFP Fact check compared\u00a0side-by-side images of the post and the broadcast and found them to be a match.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Our rating: False<\/h2>\n

We rate the claim that Gates purchased the encrypted messaging application Telegram FALSE, because it is not supported by our research. Telegram and the Gates foundation both\u00a0confirmed this is not true. An image that appears to show a Fox News report on the matter was\u00a0altered.<\/p>\n

Our fact check sources:<\/h2>\n