ITV mistakes Arma II video for IRA footage

27 Sep 2011 at 20:07:39 by Peter Parrish

The ITV documentary Exposure: Gaddafi and the IRA (aired on 26 September) accidentally used footage from the game Arma II, mistaking it for genuine IRA video of a paramilitary attack on a helicopter.

Here's a youtube upload (courtesy of 'jordan8445') which shows the segment in question, followed by the fan-made Arma II video that ITV mistakenly inserted in the programme.

What's happened here is pretty clear. There is some genuine footage of an IRA attack on a British helicopter available on youtube, called 'PIRA shoot down brit heli'. The Arma II one (made, presumably, with the game's mission editor as a kind of tribute), is named 'PIRA Shoot Down British Helicopter 1988'.

It doesn't explain how an unfortunate researcher managed to mistake videogame footage for reality, but this is probably how the switcheroo occurred.

Still, it's hilarious stuff. Especially when the narrator in the documentary deadpans "no-one died in this attack".

Show some respect ITV, that virtual chopper pilot had a virtual family!

[UPDATE] ITV has issued a statement addressing the error, which reads as follows:

"The events featured in Exposure: Gaddafi and the IRA were genuine but it would appear that during the editing process the correct clip of the 1988 incident was not selected and other footage was mistakenly included in the film by producers. This was an unfortunate case of human error for which we apologise."

The documentary has, for now, been removed from ITV's online streaming 'ITV Player' service.

Source: pcgamer.com

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