According to this story, UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization), has announced that the Indian National Anthem is the best in the world.
The story is currently circulating via email, and has also been posted to many blogs and forums, especially those that target an Indian audience.
However, I could not find any evidence whatsoever that confirms the rather fanciful claim in the message. There is nothing about such an announcement on the UNESCO website, nor are there any credible news reports that back up the claim in any way. If such an announcement was true, it seems very likely that it would have been widely reported - and one would suspect, hotly debated - in media outlets both in India and around the world.
Thus, it seems apparent that the story is no more than another pointless Internet rumour with no basis in fact.
As its name suggests, UNESCO conducts very important work on an international scale in the spheres of education, science and culture. Therefore, it seems extremely unlikely that UNESCO would waste its valuable time and resources on the rather frivolous, and ultimately meaningless, exercise of nominating the world's best national anthem.
And, in any case, even if an organization did choose a particular country's anthem as the best in the world, it is doubtful that the choice would be given much credence by nations other than the supposed "winner". Just how "good" a particular national anthem might be considered is an extremely subjective matter. Quite understandably, patriots in many nations are apt to view their own anthem as "the best" and are unlikely to be swayed from this opinion by even an organization as prestigious as UNESCO.Before I provide you with proofs to substantiate my claim, let me first show you the message I'm talking about:
So here we go:
But should we blame others for spreading such rumors? Aren’t we equally responsible for that? Do we ever think about the authenticity of a message before forwarding it to our friends or posting it on Facebook?
A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.
Did you receive such a message through e-mail or on Facebook? We'll like to hear your experience. Please share your thoughts through the comment form below.
Comment below and express your thoughts
©iStockphoto.com/Björn Kindler
 Claims that UNESCO has chosen the Indian National Anthem as the best in the world appear to be unfounded |
However, I could not find any evidence whatsoever that confirms the rather fanciful claim in the message. There is nothing about such an announcement on the UNESCO website, nor are there any credible news reports that back up the claim in any way. If such an announcement was true, it seems very likely that it would have been widely reported - and one would suspect, hotly debated - in media outlets both in India and around the world.
Thus, it seems apparent that the story is no more than another pointless Internet rumour with no basis in fact.
As its name suggests, UNESCO conducts very important work on an international scale in the spheres of education, science and culture. Therefore, it seems extremely unlikely that UNESCO would waste its valuable time and resources on the rather frivolous, and ultimately meaningless, exercise of nominating the world's best national anthem.
And, in any case, even if an organization did choose a particular country's anthem as the best in the world, it is doubtful that the choice would be given much credence by nations other than the supposed "winner". Just how "good" a particular national anthem might be considered is an extremely subjective matter. Quite understandably, patriots in many nations are apt to view their own anthem as "the best" and are unlikely to be swayed from this opinion by even an organization as prestigious as UNESCO.Before I provide you with proofs to substantiate my claim, let me first show you the message I'm talking about:
Proof #1
If UNESCO had declared India’s National Anthem (or for that matter any other country’s national anthem) as the best in the world, don’t you think it would have received wide media coverage in India and around the world? Do you remember reading any such thing in the newspapers?Proof #2
If UNESCO made any such announcement, shouldn’t there be a notification on their website? Unfortunately there is no such thing reported on UNESCO’s official website. Even if you try searching the archive on their website, you won’t find any information related to this. Neither India’s nor any other country’s national anthem has been announced as the best national anthem on UNESCO’s website- not now, and never in the past.Proof #3
Now comes the best part! Do you know way back in 2008, there was an e-mail doing the rounds, which had the same message!! India Today (a popular Indian news magazine) sent out an e-mail to UNESCO at that time to verify this claim. This is the answer they got from UNESCO:We are aware of several blogs in India reporting this story, but can assure you that UNESCO has made no such announcement concerning the anthem of India or any countryYou can read the complete article that was published in India Today here.
*****
A
lie that started in 2008 is still spreading at a rapid pace. It might
have started as a harmless joke. But people behind it don’t realize
that in doing so they are actually playing with sentiments of millions
of Indians.But should we blame others for spreading such rumors? Aren’t we equally responsible for that? Do we ever think about the authenticity of a message before forwarding it to our friends or posting it on Facebook?
A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.
Did you receive such a message through e-mail or on Facebook? We'll like to hear your experience. Please share your thoughts through the comment form below.
Comment below and express your thoughts
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