There are all sorts of reports out there on controversial figures, such as Russian president Vladimir Putin. But it’s strange to see a really bizarre one picked up by an outlet with the size and reach of The New York Post. That’s what happened Friday, though, with the Post producing a video and a tweet claiming Putin fell down some stairs and involuntarily released his bowels. That’s based on a post from anti-Kremlin channel GeneralSVR on social media service Telegram:
Putin fell down stairs, soiled himself as speculation over worsening health grows: report https://t.co/6jdPYx2NAh
— New York Post (@nypost) December 2, 2022
The 33-second video there is just text intercut with footage of Putin (seen at right above with FIFA president Gianni Infantino at the 2018 FIFA World Cup) speaking. It includes the particularly notable lines of “A Telegram channel that claims links to his bodyguards said Putin ‘involuntarily defecated‘ due to effects of ‘cancer of the gastrointestinal tract.’ The post claims Putin landed on his coccyx, fell down five steps, then rolled onto his side and slid down two more.”
The information here is incredibly scanty, and the Post does not do much to bolster why it’s worth taking seriously. A wide range of other international papers have also gotten into coverage of this, though, including England’s The Independent (where, apparently, the scatological reference standard is “pooed himself”), ValdThe Sun, and The Daily Mail, and Australia’s news.com.au. The Sun, NewsCorp Australia (behind news.com.au), and the Post are all owned by Rupert Murdoch’s NewsCorp. (Murdoch is the founder and executive chairman of that entity.)
For reference, here are some of the original GeneralSVR posts on this that were posted to Twitter Thursday:
Going down the stairs, #Putin stumbled and fell on his buttocks. After that, he fell on his side and slid down a couple of steps. The incident took place in front of the President’s bodyguards, who quickly reacted and rushed to help Putin.
9/15 pic.twitter.com/v4CGNUCGT7— generalsvr_en (@generalsvr_en) December 1, 2022
#Putin used to wear special waterproof underwear with an absorbent effect, but recently,he has been neglecting these precautions. As it turned out, in vain. The doctors escorted him to the bathroom, helped to clean up, and conducted an initial examination.
12/15 pic.twitter.com/kK8YXY4i8Z— generalsvr_en (@generalsvr_en) December 1, 2022
He can move independently. Complaints about pain in the coccyx when sitting are the only thing that worries #Putin. At night, he took painkillers. In the near future, an investigation will be carried out into what provoked the fall of the President.
14/15 pic.twitter.com/YD3vOuui87— generalsvr_en (@generalsvr_en) December 1, 2022
There’s been very little done by anyone to verify anything from that account, and there’s absolutely no indication this is true beyond these reports from this anonymous account. But it’s certainly interesting to see the Post, and a number of other properties (Murdoch-connected and otherwise), amplify something like this. Perhaps there’s a possibility for a new riff on the Post’s most famous headline: from “Headless Body In Topless Bar” to “Poop-Filled Presidential Underwear On Russian Stairs.”
[The New York Post on Twitter; photo from Tim Groothuis/Witters Sport, via USA TODAY Sports]
