Fact Check: Are the viral photos of Taylor Swift with Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs real?
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Following the arrest of Sean 'Diddy' Combs on September 16, social media has been flooded with resurfaced images and videos of the disgraced rapper with celebrities from entertainment to politics.
Pop star Taylor Swift was also dragged into the trend after photos of her posing with Diddy went viral online.
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Photos of Taylor Swift with Sean 'Diddy' Combs explodes Internet
Damn look at Taylor swift hanging with Diddy - did she go to his party mmmm maybe ? pic.twitter.com/BcJOUQ2NNy
— Winnie Schola (@WinnieSchola) March 28, 2024
Two photos of Taylor Swift with Sean 'Diddy' Combs resurfaced online in late September, days after the rapper's arrest.
One photo posted on X (formerly Twitter) by a user showed the 'Bad Blood singer engaged in a conversation with the embattled Diddy. Swift was dressed in a sequined dress, and the music mogul was in a black suit, which appeared to be from an award function.
In a second image that went viral on X, Diddy, holding an award, was seen posing with the pop sensation.
The rap mogul was arrested at Park Hyatt Hotel in Midtown, New York City, last month over trafficking and racketeering charges, and he currently serves jail time at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn until trial.
Taylor Swift's photos with Sean 'Diddy' Combs are real
A fact check by Snopes confirmed the authenticity behind the photos of Sean 'Diddy' Combs and Taylor Swift.
TinEye and Google reverse-image searches revealed that the images have been circulating online since late 2009 and early 2010, appearing on platforms like Facebook and X.
In addition, the photographs under question are also available on Getty Images, confirming those are legit and not photoshopped.
The first image was from 2009, when both attended the MTV Video Music Awards at Radio City Music Hall on September 13, 2009, in New York City. It was captured by Christopher Polk for Getty Images.
The second image is from a year ago. Getty Images photographer Catherine Powell snapped Swift and Diddy at the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, held on September 12, 2023.
Taylor Swift is latest celebrity to get dragged into Sean 'Diddy' Combs controversy
The authenticity of the two images confirms Sean 'Diddy' Combs and Taylor Swift are acquaintances since they are contemporaries in the current music industry.
Notably, the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards became infamous in Swift's career after Kanye West interrupted her acceptance speech for Best Female Video for 'You Belong with Me.'
At the time, the rap mogul was already an established figure in the industry. Nevertheless, as of now, there are no reports of any professional collaborations between the two.
Swift is not the only celebrity to be scrutinized for her connection with Diddy after his arrest. Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Barack Obama faced backlash on social media after their past links with the now-jailed rapper resurfaced.
Harris, in 2020, shared an appreciation post after Diddy hosted a town hall for the Black community to draw focus on the impact of Covid-19.
Obama was spotted with Diddy in a 2004 video, praising the rapper's efforts on voter outreach while the latter was running for Senate.
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