Video shows staged pronoun argument with flight attendant, not real dispute | Fact check

Hannah Hudnall, USA TODAY
·2 min read
2

The claim: Video shows passenger arguing with flight attendant over pronoun use

A Sept. 13 Instagram video (direct link, archive link) shows a passenger arguing with a flight attendant over the gender listed in their seat assignment. The flight attendant threatens to remove the passenger from the flight because their gender doesn't match what's on their ticket.

"INSANE: Trans person freaks out on an airplane when flight attendant uses the wrong pronoun!" reads the post's caption. Though the user adds a disclaimer saying, "Not confirmed if real or not," many commenters appear to believe the argument is legitimate.

"These kids today are completely out of control and I blame the parents," one comment reads.

The post garnered more than 70,000 likes in six days. Similar versions of the claim have been shared on Facebook and Instagram.

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Our rating: False

The video doesn't show a legitimate argument. It shows a staged scene with two actors.

Video shows actors participating in fake argument

An extended version of the video was originally shared on Facebook on Sept. 12 under the username Jibrizy. The post includes several disclaimers that the content was staged.

The end of the video features a clip of the two actors and Jibrizy saying, "Hey guys, that was all a skit. ... Who was right and who was wrong, in your opinion?"

He also added a comment beneath the video, which says, "Guys its (sic) acting before you say it watch the video we state it at the end."

Jibrizy is listed as a comedian on his Facebook profile, and the page's description says he's "a director making conversational topic videos that feel real."

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Fact-check outlets recently debunked similar claims that a Jibrizy video of a parent ripping a Pride flag off a classroom wall was real.

USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

The claim has also been debunked by Lead Stories and PolitiFact.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Pronoun argument with flight attendant is staged | Fact check