WhatsApp University

WhatsApp University

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Updated Dec 22, 2022 at 03:48PM EST by sakshi.

Added Dec 22, 2022 at 02:39PM EST by sakshi.

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About

WhatsApp University is a pejorative phrase used to refer to fake news and misinformation in the country of India, often spread through text and image forwards on the messaging app. Popularisation of the term is often credited to Indian journalist Ravish Kumar in 2018, however, the term has been used on the internet as early as 2016.

Origin

In 2016, several Indian journalists and internet commentators began to note the increasing influence of internet fake news in the form of Whatsapp forwards. On December 24th, 2016, Twitter[1] user @badjourno quote tweeted a photo posted by @smitaprakash[2] alongside the caption, "This is bizarre! Banks are printing whatsapp forwards & passing them off as circulars." The original post gathered over 200 likes, with @badjourno's quote tweet being the earliest known mention of the phrase "Whatsapp University" on the internet (seen below).


Binu Alex @badjourno. Dec 24, 2016 Lol. WhatsApp University Smita Prakash @smitaprakash Dec 24, 2016 This is bizarre! Banks are printing whatsapp forwards & passing them off as circulars. Link via @vinayaravind यूको बैंक (MEEN HEERY WYRWM) सम्मान आपके विश्वास का UCO BANK (A GOVE OF DIA UNDERTA Honours Your Trust Reserve Bank of India As per New Guidelines of Reserve Bank of India, Writing any thing on new notes makes the note invalid & it will no more be a legal tender. Just like US Dollars. If you write anything on US dollars it is not accepted by any one. Just forward to maximum people, so that the Indian public understands the importance of this message. ***

Other early news cycles about "Whatsapp University" revolved around fact-checking misinformation about articles being widely shared on the platform.[3] On May 24th, 2018, ex-NDTV journalist Ravish Kumar participated in an interview with comedian Kunal Kamra, saying that he thinks Indian Prime Minister Modi was educated about Indian history at "Whatsapp University" (seen below). The YouTube[4] video has gathered over 8 million views in four years.



Spread

The term gained more prominence in consecutive years, with a street interview by Facebook parody page "Official Peeing Human" going viral on 7th December 2018, gathering over 103,000 reactions in nearly four years (seen below).[5]

Another media personality credited with popularising the term "Whatsapp University" is YouTuber Dhruv Rathee. On December 9th, 2019, Rathee posted the following video to his Twitter,[6] gathering over 19,000 like in over three years.

Various Examples


ASGAR @asgarhid When you learn economics from Whatsapp University Indian economy is booming N We will get more rupee when exchanged with dollar Economist ⠀ How? 9:06 AM - Sep 23, 2022 SOUTH INDIA'S FIRST WHATSAPP UNIVERSITY ACTOR. HR Of FINQUILAB INDIA Netizens brutally trolled actor R. Madhavan by calling him 'Whatsapp uncle'. During the promotion of his movie Rocketry, Madhavan gave a statement that, "Hindu calendar helped ISRO to launch a rocket into space and reach Mars Orbit" Arup Chakraborty @aitmc_arup Difference between Oxford University & WhatsApp University. GDP 10.1% -7.3% THIS IS SO FUNNY KPSS @KPSSamiti - 16h Every kashmiri Muslim is not terrorist every Kashmiri pandit is not communal we both respect, love and share our pain which every kashmiri has gone through last 32 years 239 1 2,209 9,207 Aman shukla @Aman_1079 - 16h Replying to @KPSSamiti and @Pawankhera Pahele movie dekho 3 Audacity of the Whatsapp University Student. He thinks he knows better than Kashmiri Pandit Sangharsh Samiti because he has watched a movie. *Corona virus exists* me to mom: murga chahiye mereko my mom (graduated from WhatsApp University): @smmart_geek और नहीं आपके दिमाग में marna hai kya bsdk,marna hai.... tereko Dar nahi lagta. fo INQUILAB INDIA 30,000 japanese gathered to listen Jawahar lal nehru at Hiroshima, japan on 9 oct, 1957. ANI Few sanghis from whatsapp university were hired to 'chant modi modi' in Japan.

Search Interest

Unavailable.

External References

[1] Twitter – badjourno

[2] Twitter – smitaprakash

[3] Facebook – Alt News

[4]  YouTube – Kunal Kamra

[5] Facebook – Official Peeing Human

[6] Twitter – dhruv_rathee

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