Dear Facebook.
Do better.
Or at least, allow us to do better.
You claim to be building your community on connection and shared experiences, but you allow AI slop and fake news to go unchecked.
Case in point, the steaming pile of trash that is the Global News Network.
Global News Network “delivers breaking news, in-depth reporting, and real-time updates from across the world. Stay ahead with trusted coverage, clear analysis, and the stories shaping our global future.”
On April 22, they posted a video pastiche showing three separate Maya “videos” (I shall explain the quotes in a moment.) In one, Maya’s eyes slowly open as she looks at someone to her right. In another, her eyes open as she looks straight at the camera. In the third, someone—not sure who, but probably Dahlia—has her arms wrapped around Maya as she weeps uncontrollably.
The caption reads: ““SHE WAS GONE FOR 6 MINUTES… AND CAME BACK”
A 9-year-old girl has stunned everyone after surviving a devastating shooting in Tumbler Ridge.
- Reportedly unresponsive for minutes, her recovery is now raising serious questions.
- Even investigators are struggling to explain how she made it.
- Miracle… or something we don’t fully understand yet?
- The full story is waiting in the comments… don’t miss it!
In the comments, where the full story is, you get this:
For six agonizing minutes, nine-year-old Maya Gebala lay technically dead on the operating table in the trauma bay of Tumbler Ridge Regional Hospital. Her small chest was open, her heart silent, her brain showing no electrical activity. Three surgeons, two anesthetists, and a team of exhausted nurses had already accepted the worst. The injuries from the shooting were catastrophic — massive blood loss, a bullet that had torn through her abdomen and lodged near her spine, shredded liver tissue, and a collapsed lung. They had done everything humanly possible.
Then, without warning, the monitors screamed back to life.
Her heart restarted on its own. Blood pressure climbed. Brain waves flickered and strengthened. The surgeons froze, staring at the screens in disbelief. One veteran doctor later described it as “watching someone walk out of their own grave.” Within forty minutes, Maya was stable enough to close. By sunrise, she was breathing independently. Forty-eight hours later, she opened her eyes, squeezed her mother’s hand, and whispered, “Mommy, I’m thirsty.”
It goes on like this for nearly 2500 agonizing words.
Nearly every word in the steaming pile of drek is wrong.
Maya was not gone for six minutes, at least not according to anything that has been released. Also, she’s 12, not 9.
Also all the videos are AI generated. Remember the quotes? This is why. These are not videos of Maya. How do we know? A big clue is in the fact that she opens her eyes. Both of them.
While she is slowly improving, Maya has not been able to open her right eye (or use her right arm or leg) since the shooting.
This whole thing is terrible. In addition to what I mentioned above, there is no Tumbler Ridge Regional Hospital. There is no operating room; we barely have two doctors, let alone three surgeons. She was shot in the head and throat, not in her abdomen and chest, etc. ad nauseam. But is the fake videos and images of Maya that really irritate me.
Any time her parents post an image of her, someone takes and drops it in Nano Banana or some other AI app and creates a new image or video, maybe posting it with the actual correct info, maybe posting some crap that’s completely made up, like this.
I could take and block Global News Network, but here’s the deal. As much as I don’t want to see this trash, it’s far worse that this flaming dumpster fire is seen by others. I want a way to pull it down.
So I tried reporting it.
My first option is “Problem involves someone under 18.”
That is appropriate.
But the options that Facebook gives there are not: Threatens to share my nude images, Seems like sexual exploitation, sharing someone’s nude images, bullying or harassment, or physical abuse.
It’s sharing fake information about a 12 year old. It’s not sexual, but it is nearly as distasteful.
Next option: Bullying, harassment or abuse. Already covered and not appropriate (click on that, and it’s all about sharing nudes, sexual exploitation and the like).
It’s not suicide or self harm related, no. Nor is it violent, hateful or disturbing content, at least not in the way you mean it. It’s not selling or promoting restricted items or adult content, nor does it violate intellectual property.
It is scam, fraud or false information? Yes. So I click on that, then on the option: “sharing false information” and all I get is a cheery “thanks for letting us know.”
There is no sense of urgency. No sense that you are actually going to do anything about it. No sense of righteous anger that Global Notevenclosetobeingthenews Network is exploiting this tragedy for their own monetary gain. And last I checked, the story was still up.
They are exploiting the victim—Maya—and they are exploiting the people who don’t know any better and click on their spammy, scammy links and get fed a fistful of lies.
If you are going to give me the option to report this as being trash, at least let me know that something is being done about it. Because this feels like that close door button in elevators that isn’t actually hooked up to anything, but you can push, just to make it feel like you’re doing something.
At least give her parents the ability to pull crap like this down. Because there’s only so much of this we can take before we move on to someplace better.
Trent is the publisher of Tumbler RidgeLines.
