Fact Check

No, German news program didn't broadcast 'fiery' weather map

Posts claimed a German news show displayed the map to ring the alarm on climate change.

by Emery Winter, Published July 10, 2025


Screenshot of edited image of presenter in front of lava-covered weather map, yellow background

Image courtesy of X user @wolsned


Claim:
In late June 2025, an image circulating online authentically showed a weather map covered in lava that was broadcast on German news program "Tagesthemen."
Rating:
Fake

About this rating


In summer 2025, social media users shared an image (archived) supposedly showing a map of Germany covered in lava on the German news program "Tagesthemen." The image spread on X, Reddit (archived) and Facebook (archived), where a Polish-language page widely shared it.

The image made the rounds on social media while a heat wave gripped much of Europe, reportedly giving the Wimbledon tennis tournament in the U.K. its hottest start on record and driving temperatures above 100 degrees Fahrenheit in parts of Portugal, Spain, France and Germany.

The original post with the photo of the lava-covered weather map included the following caption: "Jeeeeezus, if you think the climate propaganda is strong in the UK… Check out the fiery inferno hell shown on German TV. Climate Change is a scam."

Screenshot of tweet of edited weather map. The tweet reads:

(X user @wolsned)

However, the image had been edited. The weather map in the original "Tagesthemen" broadcast did not overlay a lava graphic on its weather map.

Based on the identical temperatures on the map and the clothing worn by the weather presenter, the image appeared to be an edited version of a June 28, 2025, broadcast, seen at roughly the 18:13 time-stamp in the YouTube upload of the show. No lava appears on the weather map at this or any other point in the program.

Additionally, the fake version of the weather map misspelled the German city of "Stuttgart" as "Stutigart," an unlikely error for a German news broadcast.

A side-by-side of the original broadcast on the left and the edited image on the right

(Left: The real broadcast. Right: The fake image. Tagesthemen / X user: @wolsned)

One social media user replied to the author of the original X post containing the fake image to say that their version "is obviously fake." In response, the original X user wrote (archived): "It is called satire, obviously way over your head."

This was not the first time a weather map from a "Tagesthemen" broadcast was edited and posted to X to accuse the program of "climate propaganda." In 2023, another X user shared a picture from the program's weather coverage showing a fire animation edited onto a weather map from a June 8, 2023, broadcast.

In 2022, Snopes also investigated a similar claim regarding the news program's sister show "Tagesschau."


By Emery Winter

Emery Winter is based in Charlotte, North Carolina, and previously worked for TEGNA'S VERIFY national fact-checking team. They enjoy sports and video games.

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