Media Confidential Bellingcat founder: ‘Playing whack-a-mole with disinformation is always going to fail’
Feb 9, 2026
Eliot Higgins, founder of Bellingcat and pioneer of open-source verification, discusses verifying events with multiple videos and data sources. He covers syncing footage, triangulation methods like satellite and metadata, how bad actors exploit tools, clashes with traditional journalism, platform provenance limits, and the personal risks and funding pressures of investigative work.
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Verify By Syncing Multiple Videos
- Sync multiple videos frame-by-frame and slow them down to reveal critical moments and timing.
- Avoid altering speed or context in ways that create false impressions when presenting findings.
Same Tools, Different Motives
- Bad actors can mimic open-source techniques to craft convincing but selective investigations.
- Motivations and reward systems in media ecosystems drive the spread of false, viral narratives.
Triangulate Using Physical Details
- Triangulate claims with independent sources like satellite imagery, Street View and shadow analysis.
- Use small physical details (fence posts, shadows) to detect AI manipulation or provenance errors.
