OSINT Exercise 008

OSINT Exercise #008

This is a write-up for an “OSINT Exercise 008 by Sofia Santos”

Task description

Task briefing:

The large photo below was taken from a page of the Epoch Times, a Chinese newspaper.

Please answer the following questions:

a) What was the audience applauding?

b) When was the photo taken?

c) What is the name of the venue?

Click here to open the photo on a new tab.

Exercise level:

For beginners: a) Easy, b) Medium, c) Medium

For experts: a) Easy, b) Easy, c) Easy

Task photo

Process

Since I do not speak Chinese, I used Google Lens to translate the text in the photo:

Translated photo

The headline reads, “Shen Yun brings blessings to the whole world.” A quick search reveals that Shen Yun is a performing arts and entertainment company. The audience must have been applauding them.

This Epoch Times article was published in the January 12, 2023, issue. Using Google Lens to focus only on the photo in the article led me to this article on the Falun Dafa Australia Information Centre website. The exact same photo was used in that article:

Photo from the article

The caption answers the rest of the questions (hooray). I am not sure whether I can verify the date as January 7th rather than 8th; however, the location can be confirmed by looking up “Chrysler Hall in Norfolk, Virginia”:

Chrysler Hall in Norfolk, Virginia

Answers

a) Shen Yun

b) January 7, 2023

c) Chrysler Hall in Norfolk, Virginia