A video from the Culture Covered YouTube channel from the start of September 2023 said that Grammy-winning singer Celine Dion’s family had revealed that she was passing away with stiff-person syndrome. Despite the attention this accusation has received, the information provided in the video is incorrect. In this research, the claims made in the movie will be carefully analyzed and their lack of support will be demonstrated through arguments.
Who Is Celine Dion?
Céline Marie Claudette Dion is a Canadian singer known as the “Queen of Power Ballads” for her outstanding singing abilities. She was born on March 30, 1968, in Charlemagne, Quebec, and is renowned for skillfully fusing several musical styles in her work, including pop, rock, R&B, gospel, and classical music.
Céline Marie Claudette Dion has performed in Spanish, Italian, German, Latin, Japanese, and Chinese in addition to her primary recording languages of English and French. She was discovered by René Angélil, who would later become her manager and husband, and soared to prominence as a teenage phenomenon in Canada in the 1980s, launching a legendary music career.
The False Claim
According to the YouTube video “Celine Dion’s Family Reveals How She Is Dying,” the singer’s family provided information regarding the singer’s health. As shown in the video:
Very sad news coming in from Celine Dion’s family, as the sister of the legendary singer just revealed that Celine is now in severe, constant pain, and there’s nothing that can be done anymore to help her. And her incurable disease is progressing very quickly. So, for those of you who don’t know, Celine was diagnosed with a rare, progressive, neurological disorder called stiff-person syndrome, which affects only about 1 in a million people. It has no known cause and unfortunately, there is no cure.
This is true that Dion revealed in December 2022 that she had been suffering from a stiff-person syndrome diagnosis. It was also true that Claudette, Dion’s sister, had stated that her sister was in agony and having spasms during an interview for a HELLO! Canada (1) article that was published on August 31. It mentioned:
“It’s an illness we know so little about,” admits Claudette, candidly reflecting on symptoms linked to the syndrome. “There are spasms – they’re impossible to control. Do you know who people often jump up in the night because of a cramp in the leg or the calf? It’s a bit like that, but in all muscles,” she says, dismayed. “There’s little we can do to support her, to alleviate her pain.”
Checking the Video’s Accuracy
Youtube Views And Tiktok Reposts
Just over 12,000 people saw the questioned YouTube video, which suggests a small audience. However, it received further attention after being shared in three parts on TikTok, receiving over 430,000 views altogether (2, 3, 4). The TikTok reposts’ ability to become viral indicates that false information, especially when coming from less reliable sources, may travel quickly throughout social media networks.
AI-Generated Voice
The narrator in the video had what sounded like an artificial intelligence (AI)-generated voice. Although AI-generated narration is not intrinsically dangerous, when paired with deceptive material, it can help spread erroneous information.
Credible Information About Stiff-Person Syndrome
Employees at Johns Hopkins Medicine posted the following information on the likelihood that a patient with the disease will die on the institution’s website (5). It mentioned:
Death from stiff person syndrome is rare and typically does not result from the disease itself but from its complications such as blood clots or wound infections due to immobility. In some extreme cases, spasms of the chest muscles can affect a person’s ability to breathe.
Origin Of The Misinformation
The “page transparency” section (6) of a Facebook page that looked to be associated with Culture Covered suggested that the operators of the YouTube channel may have been Indian nationals. This data is important because it highlights how pervasive misleading information is and how necessary it is to assess the validity of sources from various nations.
Patterns Of Misinformation
Culture Covered is not the only YouTube channel with a history of using misleading thumbnails to spread fake and misleading information. Similar channels like Just In, Viral Vision, Spill Today, and others have lately emerged and are often spreading incorrect information. To lure viewers, these channels usually rely on controversy and sensationalism, which helps spread wrong and fake information.
Examples Of Past Misinformation
In the past, these YouTube channels have posted fake statements about Oscar-winning actor Matthew McConaughey’s opinions of the film “Sound of Freedom,” claims (7) that have subsequently been refuted. They also spread untrue rumors that Tom Selleck assaulted (8) “The View” co-host Whoopi Goldberg and that Dwayne Johnson (The Rock) panicked (9) when Oprah Winfrey purportedly exposed lies about the Maui wildfires.
Audience Response
It’s strange that not many YouTube viewers of these videos appeared to notice the fake claims mentioned in the video, and the AI-generated voice was never noticed. This suggests that misinformation can have a significant impact when it is not critically checked by viewers, especially when it corresponds with existing beliefs or expectations.
Conclusion
With all the information, now we are sure that it is totally fake that Celine Dion’s family made a statement saying she was suffering from stiff-person syndrome. Although Celine Dion did publicly announce her condition, there is no substantial evidence to support the claims that her relatives concocted it. The in-issue video, which Culture Covered released, is a component of a bigger misinformation campaign spread by related YouTube channels that are known for sensationalizing and distributing scam content.
Consumers should exercise critical thought and fact-checking when presented with astounding claims, news, and information, particularly in the age of social media when incorrect information may spread swiftly. The inaccurate information about Celine Dion’s health in this case serves as a reminder of the necessity to confirm information from reliable sources and to use caution when determining the veracity of online news.
Sources:
- Celine Dion ‘praying for a miracle’ amid Stiff Person Syndrome battle, sister says: exclusive https://www.hellomagazine.com/healthandbeauty/health-and-fitness/501397/celine-dion-sister-health-update-stiff-person-syndrome-recovery/
- Tiktok https://www.tiktok.com/@truecrimetv2023/video/7277713828471688490
- Tiktok https://www.tiktok.com/@truecrimetv2023/video/7277720835115240747
- Tiktok https://www.tiktok.com/@truecrimetv2023/video/7277738377405910315
- Stiff Person Syndrome (SPS) https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/stiff-person-syndrome-sps
- Culture Covered https://www.facebook.com/culturecovered/about_profile_transparency
- Did Matthew McConaughey Speak About ‘Sound of Freedom,’ Saying Hollywood ‘All Sold Their Soul’? https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/matthew-mcconaughey-sound-of-freedom/
- Whoopi Goldberg ‘Begs for Mercy’ as Tom Selleck ‘Destroys’ Her for Aldean Remarks?https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/whoopi-goldberg-tom-selleck/
- The Rock ‘Panics’ After Lies About Maui Wildfires Were Accidentally Leaked by Oprah? https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/rock-panics-maui-oprah/
