The meeting of world leaders at the G7 Summit in June 2018 produced a number of news stories of global importance. It also provided us with some stories of decidedly lesser importance, such as the claim that a 16-second video clip captured at the event purportedly shows Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau's (fake) eyebrow falling off:
Justin Trudeau’s left eyebrow detached after meeting Trump — so what? These days, who doesn’t wear fake eyebrows? pic.twitter.com/EZTeYllCrH
— Mike (@Doranimated) June 10, 2018
This clip received a surprising amount of online coverage, appearing on several different web sites offering varying amounts of skepticism about what it showed, while others sites, such as the disreputable Gateway Pundit, simply declared that "Justin has a falling eyebrow!"
Other bits of "evidence" for the "fake eyebrow" theory, consisting of screenshots from the aforementioned video, were shared on r/The_Donald, a Reddit group for Trump's supporters:
Although this video clip appears to be genuine, it does not show Justin Trudeau's eyebrows falling off his face.
This video was taken during a joint news conference with Trudeau and the French president Emmanuel Macron ahead of the G7 summit. The full conference can be viewed here, and the relevant portion (at around the one-minute mark) can be seen below:
Trudea's eyebrows may look strange in this video, but that phenomenon appears to be the result of lighting, not follicular fakery.
Trudeau's eyebrow supposedly "falls off" in the middle of a news conference, yet the Canadian PM doesn't acknowledge or react to it (even though it would certainly be a moment of supreme embarrassment for him), he is never seen "reattaching" his eyebrow, and he continues to talk on camera for several more minutes without his eyebrows coming (further) unglued.
Several other images from the news conference also show that Trudeau's eyebrows were, in fact, appropriately positioned on his face:
This afternoon in Ottawa, President @EmmanuelMacron and I met ahead of the @g7 to talk about how Canada & France can work together more closely to increase trade and create more jobs & opportunities for people on both sides of the Atlantic. pic.twitter.com/vWfVMa60RA
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) June 6, 2018
Trudeau, Macron lay down hard line on U.S. tariffs ahead of G7 https://t.co/GtyBlmK6P1 pic.twitter.com/YTwJ4VTa5O
— The Globe and Mail (@globeandmail) June 7, 2018
Close-up pictures of Trudeau's face show that his eyebrows grow thicker on the bottom and are slightly darker on the underside of the supraorbital ridge. In certain lighting conditions this combination can, apparently, make it appear as if the brow is misplaced:
Interestingly, this isn't the first time that Trudeau's eyebrows have been in the news. The Independent posted a glorious review the Canadian prime minister's full brows in an article that argued people had to stop objectifying Trudeau for the sake of democracy:
But I digress – because none of these chaps compare to Justin Trudeau, for whom my adoration is as pure as his sea blue eyes. Indeed, his dazzling brows, lion mane and mad boxing skills have enraptured many a woman. Don’t just take it from me – in the last week or so, shirtless images were found of the Canadian Prime Minister and so heavily circulated that they apparently “broke the internet”. You’d have to be an amoeba not to look.
In Trudeau’s case, adoration of the man can blind his followers to statements and sentiment; they can stop them from adequately accessing his ideas. Eyebrows and abs are but smoke and mirrors to political policy. For democracy’s sake, we must control ourselves!