We’ve seen the claim circulating on X and Facebook that Samsung is withdrawing its advertising sponsorship of the 2024 Paris Olympics because of a depiction of the “Last Supper” in the Game’s opening ceremony.
According to those spreading the claim, the opening ceremony featured drag performers assembled in a tableau around a table in reference to Da Vinci’s Last Supper. Some have decried this as parody and mockery of Christianity.
However, the ceremony organisers have since stated that they drew inspiration from Greek myths in homage to the gods of Olympus, with the Greek god Dionysus (who is god of festivities, wine and the father of Sequana, who is goddess of the Seine River) represented by the man painted in blue. According to the artistic director, Thomas Jolly, the scene depicts a “pagan feast….in order to celebrate diversity and pay tribute to feasting and French gastronomy.” The painting Le Festin des Dieux (or, Feast of the Gods) has since been mentioned as a possible reference for the performance instead as it also features revellers posing around a table.
Nonetheless, the organisers have apologised for any unintentional offence caused, and some posters online have continued to assert that the ceremony was a direct insult to Christians all over the world. An American company, C Spire, also announced its intention to pull Olympic advertising as a direct result of the “offensive and unacceptable mockery.”
However, Samsung’s contract with the 2024 Paris Olympics is a much more prominent one, with Samsung and the International Olympics Committee (IOC) having inked and long-running deal that runs through to 2028.
We looked for the source of the claim that Samsung is withdrawing from its advertising deal with the Games and found the earliest mention was posted on the platform Esspots, which posted an article titled Breaking: Samsung Drops Out of $1 Billion Advertising Campaign with Olympics, “They’ve Gone Woke”. This article was subsequently shared on social media, with posts on Facebook in particular garnering thousands of views and comments.
However, a closer look at Esspots reveals that it is not, in fact, a news site at all. Instead, as their “About Us” section clearly states, it is a satire and parody site that publishes a steady stream of “satirical” articles written in the style of a long news report.
Despite the article going into great detail about the claim (citing press conferences that never happened and statements that do not exist), its contents are completely unsubstantiated. There have been no statements from Samsung about any changes to its partnership with the Olympics, and the social media accounts of both Samsung and the Olympic Games have continued to post regularly about each other.
Therefore, the claim is false – it is satire that has been wrongly identified as real information.
Satire treads a fine line between subversive, effective humour and outright disinformation. This is even more so when the subject is sensitive, and the satire is presented in a way which lends itself to being widely shared without clear indication of its satirical origin. In this case, the article looks extremely convincing when shared as a link on social media.
While it is also the reader’s responsibility to check sources and research further, the role of satirical sites remains a tricky one – particularly if they frequently lead to mis/disinformation being circulated. As the 2024 Games commence, opportunities for more false news stories and disinformation will continue to emerge, and it is important to take claims with a pinch of salt – especially if they involve sensitive subjects such as religion or international relations.
