Fact check: Video shows mother and baby born healthy, not stillborn child revived by prayer
The claim: Video shows stillborn baby cry during mother's prayer
A Facebook video shows a woman with an infant pressed against her chest. The woman speaks emotionally throughout the video and, at one point, the baby begins to cry.
The logo for the Hospital da Mulher at Hospital Inácia Pinto dos Santos in Brazil can be seen on the woman's shirt.
"Newborn baby was pronounced dead by doctors but the mother prayed and the baby began to cry," reads the video's caption in the March 2 post (direct link, archive link).
The video was shared more than 5,000 times in two weeks.
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Our rating: False
The baby in the video was born alive and healthy, according to a local government press release.
Video shows baby born alive and healthy
The video was captured at the Hospital da Mulher at Hospital Inácia Pinto dos Santos in Brazil, according to a 2020 press release from the Feira de Santana Hospital Foundation, a government organization that manages the hospital.
"The child was not born dead," reads the release, which was written in Portuguese. "The newborn was born by normal delivery this weekend and was doing well in his mother's arms. When she began to pray in thanks for her son's life, the baby naturally began to cry."
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The Hospital da Mulher logo shown on the woman's shirt in the video can also be seen on a patient's garment in a post on the government's website.
Based on the press release, local websites also debunked the video in 2020.
USA TODAY reached out to the Facebook user who shared the post for comment.
The video was also debunked by Reuters.
Our fact-check sources:
Acorda Cidade, Sept. 14, 2020, It's Fake News: Women's Hospital clarifies that baby was not born dead (Google translate)
Feira de Santana Hospital Foundation, Jan. 3, 2018, The first baby of 2018 is born by normal delivery at the Women's Hospital (Google translate)
Google Maps, accessed March 17, Hospital da Mulher
Google Maps, accessed March 17, Hospital Inácia Pinto dos Santos
Feira de Santana Hospital Foundation, Sept. 14, 2020, It's Fake News: Women's Hospital clarifies that baby was not born dead (Google translate)
Macajuba Acontece, 2020, Is Fake! Video of baby presumed dead "resuscitates" after prayer in Feira de Santana (Google translate)
Reuters, March 14, Fact Check-Video does not show stillborn baby coming back to life while mother prays
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fact check: False claim video shows stillborn baby revived by prayer