No, video doesn't show popular Kenyan musician Akothee endorsing a treatment for joint pain. It's a deepfake promoting a dubious product
IN SHORT: The video shows Akothee promoting a supposed joint pain remedy linked to a Kenyan doctor. But it is another deepfake video spreading health misinformation.
A video circulating as an advertisement on Facebook shows Kenyan musician Akothee in an interview promoting an "effective" treatment for joint pain.
She claims that she has been suffering from knee and back pain for five years and that doctors and treatments have not helped her, but have only made her condition worse. She claims doctors and pharmacies are not interested in curing patients, but in making money.
Akothee then says a Dr Catherine Nyongesa supposedly diagnosed her correctly, explaining that a lack of synovial fluid has caused her joint problems.
She claims that this doctor gave her a treatment that completely cured her. Akothee then urges others to buy the same "innovative medicine" through a link, saying pharmaceutical companies and politicians are blocking it to keep people uninformed.
The video has over three million views, over 800 comments, and over 9,500 likes.
The context
Esther Akoth, popularly known as Akothee, is a famous Kenyan musician and entrepreneur.
Dr Catherine Nyongesa is a radiation oncologist who is the director of medical services at Kenyatta National Hospital and the founder of the Texas Cancer Centre.
Joint pain affects a significant number of Kenyans, and experts have warned of an increase in cases in recent years. Many conditions associated with joint pain have no cure, but they can be managed with treatments and lifestyle changes to improve quality of life.
But is the video in question, showing Akothee's testimony of healing, genuine? We checked.
Video is a deepfake spreading debunked claims
The video contains many red flags that indicate it is a deepfake and part of a deceptive marketing scheme.
First, a reverse image search of keyframes from the video leads to this unrelated interview with Akothee. Her slightly realistic voice and lip movements indicate that deepfake technology was used to manipulate the original footage.
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Second, Dr Nyongesa is a radiation oncologist specialising in cancer treatment, not orthopaedics or joint problems. Africa Check has previously exposed other health scams falsely linking her to fake cures for joint pain.
Third, Akothee refers to Dr Nyongesa as "he" in the video, even though the doctor is female. This inconsistency suggests that the script is generic. This is common in other fraudulent messages where fake testimonials are recycled, with only the names of the people used changed.
Fourth, the video oversimplifies the causes of joint pain by suggesting that they are all caused by a lack of synovial fluid. This is medically inaccurate, as many joint pain conditions often have multiple causes, including genetics, other diseases, inflammation, injury, age-related cartilage wear, and changes in synovial fluid.
Fifth, the video contains other red flags associated with scams. For example, it promotes a "miracle cure" and uses fear to manipulate viewers by claiming there are conspiracies between doctors, politicians, and pharmaceutical companies.
It also appeals to urgency, urging viewers to act immediately and then encouraging them to click on a link to buy the unnamed product.
Finally, Akothee shared a screenshot of the video, labelled the claim as false and urged users to report the page for spreading falsehoods.
This video is a deepfake and part of a health scam targeting people with joint problems to sell them a dubious product.
