A 2019 “Project Runway” episode isn’t evidence for a COVID-19 conspiracy

A 2019 “Project Runway” episode that aired before the COVID-19 pandemic’s 2020 start featured a model wearing a face mask and an outfit designed by a contestant named Kovid Kapoor.

Social media users are claiming the episode is proof the pandemic was planned. 

A June 30 Instagram post featuring footage from the show included text that read, “4/4/19 — 9 months prior to fake covid being rolled out. TV show ‘Project Runway’ had a model wearing a mask named ‘Kovid Kapoor.’” (The post incorrectly said that was the model’s name; it was the designer’s name.)  

The Instagram post’s caption reads, “Proof of the hoax … right here. You’re in serious denial if you think this is a coincidence.”

Social media users chimed in, with one person commenting, “Convid scamdemic. There are people out here still buying into it.”

This post was flagged as part of Meta’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram.) 

(Screenshot from Instagram)

The footage first gained traction in 2020 on TikTok. Although the clip is authentic, it’s not evidence that the COVID-19 pandemic is a hoax — or that the pandemic was planned. Claims that government leaders and people in power planned the COVID-19 pandemic have persisted since 2020; there is no credible evidence to back the claims. 

The footage is from the fourth episode of “Project Runway’s” 17th season, titled “Survive in Style.” Designers were tasked with creating “survival chic” looks, and Kapoor told Reuters in 2020 that he was inspired by “issues of pollution.” 

Face masks were common in Asia before the COVID-19 pandemic began. In January, Kapoor told The Sun, a British newspaper, that he took inspiration from his native country, India, where “a lot of people wear masks” because “pollution is so high.” The story ran in The Sun’s U.S. edition.

“I had no idea (COVID-19) was going to happen,” the designer added.

Kapoor’s first name, Kovid, is a Hindi name meaning “scholar or learned person,” and it’s unrelated to the pandemic.

We rate the claim that a 2019 clip from the show “Project Runway,” is proof that the COVID-19 pandemic was a hoax False. 

By

Mia Penner

Staff writer

July 2, 2024

Truth-o-meter Ruling

False

IF YOUR TIME IS SHORT

• Kovid Kapoor, a contestant on "Project Runway," a fashion design competition television show, said in an interview that he used a face mask as part of his 2019 design in reference to air pollution.

• Kapoor’s first name, Kovid, is a Hindi name meaning "scholar or learned person."

• Claims that government leaders and those in power planned the COVID-19 pandemic have persisted since 2020; there is no credible evidence to back the claims. 

Statement

A 2019 clip from the show “Project Runway,” with a face mask and a designer named Kovid, is proof that the COVID-19 pandemic was a hoax.

Context

an Instagram post

Speaker/Target

Speaker: Instagram posts

Statement Date

June 30, 2024