Several websites worldwide are publishing misleading headlines asserting that the Marubo, an Indigenous people in the Amazon, have developed an “addiction to porn” after receiving Internet access for the first time.
The misinformation originated from a report in The New York Times about the how Elon Musk's Starlink provided satellite broadband to the indigenous tribe. However, the report only mentioned the concern of one of their leaders regarding the potential access of minors to adult content.
What happened? New York Times reporter Jack Nicas visited the Marubo villages in April. Around 2,000 indigenous people live in isolation in the Amazon rainforest and just a few months ago gained access to the Internet through Starlink.
- For a week, Nicas observed how the Marubo people used the Internet to communicate between villages, talk to their loved ones, and seek help during emergencies.
- Many Marubo expressed concerns that contact with the outside world could disrupt the culture they've preserved for generations.
What did the report actually say? The report didn’t mention porn addicts at all. It only highlighted complaints from some elders about “teenagers glued to phones,” “group chats full of gossip,” and “minors watching pornography.”
One specific tribe leader, Alfredo Marubo, expressed concern that some boys were sharing porn videos in WhatsApp groups. In the context of their society, public displays of affection are considered taboo, as reported by the outlet.
How was the story twisted? Hundreds of U.S. websites published headlines suggesting that the tribe had a widespread porn addiction.
This misinformation then spread to several countries, including Spain, Brazil, and even reached some of the villages where the Marubo people live, work, and study.
The reaction. Enoque Marubo, the leader who brought Starlink to the villages, denounced the claims in a video on his Instagram account, stating that they were “unfounded, false and only reflect a biased ideological current that disrespects our autonomy and identity.” Enoqué's comments were echoed in a new article in The New York Times debunking the hoax.
Alfredo Marubo, the leader quoted in the original article, issued a statement saying the misleading headlines “have the potential to cause irreversible damage to people’s image.”
He took aim at the very outlet that published the original story, accusing The New York Times of focusing too much on the negative aspects of the arrival of the Internet to his tribe. Notably, he had proudly shared the report in a previous Instagram post.
Some final thoughts. The incident demonstrates how a marginal and nuanced detail in a story can be decontextualized and exaggerated to turn it into an out-of-control stereotype and false narrative.
Behind the headlines seeking humorous shock is a serious lack of cultural empathy for a community that has experienced exposure to virality in the worst possible way: by being singled out and falsely accused for a laugh.
Image | Starlink
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