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Trace the Information: Is this a real CBC report about Ukrainian Olympic athletes?

SKILL: Trace the Information

DIFFICULTY: Simple

SUBJECT(S): Pop Culture, Politics/Current Events, Sports, AI

Posted: February 23, 2026

Students will use a keyword search to learn a video showing CBC Chief Correspondent Adrienne Arsenault reporting on the 2026 Olympics was altered using AI to spread disinformation about Ukrainian athletes.

Related Lesson

Verification Skills Lesson 4: Trace the Information

Link to Example

CBC Olympic village report (YouTube)
Video clip of CBC Chief Correspondent Adrienne Arsenault reporting in Olympics athlete's village in Milan with super imposed text "AI ALTERED VIDEO"

Background

Generative AI programs can be used to create photo-realistic images, videos, and audio. These programs are trained on a huge number of images and videos, which they use to generate new content. A person using the AI can simply write what they want to see, and the program will produce an image or video based on that description.

A deepfake is an image, video, or audio clip that is made by AI designed to trick you into thinking it’s real. These highly convincing fabrications can be used to impersonate real people like politicians, celebrities, and news anchors. Bad actors will often use deepfakes of trusted public figures to promote scams or spread disinformation.



About the Example

This X post shares a video of what appears to be CBC Chief Correspondent Adrienne Arsenault reporting on the 2026 Olympic Village, claiming the Ukrainian team was housed far from other athletes due to toxic behaviour at the previous Paris Olympics.

While the speaker certainly looks and sounds like a real news anchor, this video was not shared directly by CBC news. Let’s see if we can trace this information back to CBC to find out if this video has been altered or is missing context.

By searching keywords like “CBC olympics ukrainian accommodation,” we find a fact check from the CBC identifying the video as fake. We learn that the introduction was real and posted by CBC, but the original video was altered using a deepfake of Adrienne Arsenault’s voice to spread disinformation about Ukrainian athletes.

According to reporting from BBC Verify, a longstanding Russian disinformation operation is using the Winter Olympics to discredit Ukrainian fans and athletes and attempt to turn public opinion against Ukraine. The video we saw employs a common tactic: taking real videos of trusted figures and inserting deepfake narration partway through to make false information appear authentic.



Activities 

  1. Show students the post (uploaded on the CTRL-F youtube channel) and have them summarize the claim. Ask them to identify the apparent original source of the video as well as the source that reshared the video.
  2. Have students use a keyword search to trace the video closer to its original source to find out if it has been altered or is missing context.
  3. Have students watch the CBC fact check of the video. Guiding questions:
    • What context did you learn about the video? How was it created?
    • What might have motivated someone to create this video?
    • What might have motivated people to reshare this video on social media?
    • Why might they have used the CBC logo and a CBC correspondent?


Review and Discuss Key Concepts (optional)

Review the concept of a deepfake: an image, video, or audio clip that is made by AI to seem real.

Show students the video “CIVIX Explains AI: Hallucinations and Deepfakes” and discuss the implications of deepfake technology. Guiding questions:

  • What is the best way to determine if a video is a deepfake?
  • What are some consequences of sharing deepfake videos like this one?
  • Who is responsible for the spread of deepfake misinformation and disinformation?


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