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THE SAME WORDS, PRINTED DIFFERENTLYThursday 13 August 2026

5 outlets quote this line 2 different ways.

apnews.com: “At its current pace, it’s on track to eclipse the West African Ebola outbreak of 2014 to 2016,”; abcnews.com: “At its current pace, it's on track to eclipse the West African Ebola outbreak of 2014 to…

As published

5 pages captured at the time, in each outlet's own typography. Open one to read the copy held outside the publisher's control.

apnews.com as published: Congo’s Ebola outbreak is on track to surpass the deadliest one in history, WHO chief saysapnews.com2026-08-13 14:08:52abcnews.com as published: WHO says Congo’s Ebola outbreak is on track to surpass the deadliest one in history - ABC Newsabcnews.com2026-08-15 13:46:00al.com as published: Congo’s Ebola outbreak on track to surpass deadliest in history, WHO chief saysal.com2026-08-13 14:08:52breakingnews.ie as published: DR Congo Ebola outbreak on track to surpass deadliest in history, says WHObreakingnews.ie2026-08-13 14:08:52euronews.com as published: Congo’s Ebola outbreak on track to surpass deadliest in history, WHO chief sayseuronews.com2026-08-13 14:08:52
Same storyLater: The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has reached 5,021 confirmed cases aLater: The Democratic Republic of Congo is experiencing a rapidly spreading Ebola outbreak causedEarlier: The World Health Organization announced that the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Earlier: The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, declared on 15 May 2026,Each entry records what was published on its own date and is not edited afterwards.

What this entry found

  • THE SAME WORDS, PRINTED DIFFERENTLY

    3 outlets quote this line 2 different ways.

    • apnews.com: “had a big head start”
    • breakingnews.ie: “The outbreak had a big head start, still way ahead of us, and we’re playing catch-up,”
    • euronews.com: “had a big head start”
  • OUTLETS DISAGREE

    Descriptive characterization of the current Congo outbreak

    • apnews.com (describes it as 'the fastest-growing one yet')
    • abcnews.com (describes it as 'the fastest-growing in history')
    • breakingnews.ie (describes it as 'the fastest-growing in history')
    • euronews.com (describes it as 'the fastest-growing one yet')
  • OUTLETS DISAGREE

    The 2014-2016 West African outbreak killed over 11,000 people out of more than 28,000 cases versus out of more than 28,000 cases

    • apnews.com (killed over 11,000 people, with no total cases stated in excerpt)
    • abcnews.com (killed over 11,000 people out of more than 28,000 cases)
    • breakingnews.ie (killed more than 11,000 people out of more than 28,000 cases)
    • euronews.com (claimed over 11,000 lives, with 2014-2016 outbreak having at least 28,000…
  • ONE SOURCE, MANY MASTHEADS

    5 outlets carried this. They resolve to 4 independent sources.

    A reader sampling these outlets received 4 accounts, not 5.

2 further findings below ↓

5outlets→4independent
What happened, for context

The World Health Organization warned on August 13, 2026 that the Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo is on track to surpass the 2014-2016 West African outbreak, which killed over 11,000 people. The current Congo outbreak, caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, has killed over 2,000 people out of more than 4,300 cases and is spreading faster than containment efforts in a conflict-affected region with limited health infrastructure.

4 of 5 articles were readable. Headline only, no body text retrieved, for: al.com. Nothing below is drawn from those outlets beyond their headline.

Who reported it

  • apnews.comWIRE
  • abcnews.comUNCLASSIFIED
    • al.comUNCLASSIFIED
    • euronews.comUNCLASSIFIED
    identical copy
  • breakingnews.ieUNCLASSIFIED

References

Carried by multiple outlets

  • WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated the Congo outbreak is on track to eclipse the West African Ebola outbreak of 2014-2016apnews.com, abcnews.com, breakingnews.ie, euronews.com
  • The 2014-2016 West African Ebola outbreak killed over 11,000 peopleapnews.com, abcnews.com, breakingnews.ie, euronews.com
  • The current Congo outbreak has killed over 2,000 people out of more than 4,300 casesapnews.com, abcnews.com, breakingnews.ie, euronews.com
  • The outbreak was declared on May 15, but sequencing showed it began in Februaryapnews.com, abcnews.com, breakingnews.ie, euronews.com
  • The outbreak is caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, which has no approved vaccines or treatmentsapnews.com, abcnews.com, breakingnews.ie, euronews.com
  • The outbreak is located in eastern Congo in a remote region facing ongoing conflict near the borders with South Sudan, Uganda and Rwandaapnews.com, abcnews.com, breakingnews.ie, euronews.com
  • and 2 more, not shown

Reported by one outlet only

  • The 2014-2016 West African outbreak had more than 28,000 casesonly abcnews.com
  • The 2014-2016 outbreak had at least 28,000 cases and took about eight months to reach 1,000 deathsonly euronews.com
  • Some health workers have gone on strike over lack of payonly apnews.com, breakingnews.ie
  • Misinformation about the virus circulates in communities and some people are wary of outsiders, keeping people from clinicsonly breakingnews.ie

Reported unevenly

  • Descriptive characterization of the current Congo outbreakstated by apnews.com (describes it as 'the fastest-growing one yet'), abcnews.com (describes it as 'the fastest-growing in history'), breakingnews.ie (describes it as 'the fastest-growing in history'), euronews.com (describes it as 'the fastest-growing one yet')
  • The 2014-2016 West African outbreak killed over 11,000 people out of more than 28,000 cases versus out of more than 28,000 casesstated by apnews.com (killed over 11,000 people, with no total cases stated in excerpt), abcnews.com (killed over 11,000 people out of more than 28,000 cases), breakingnews.ie (killed more than 11,000 people out of more than 28,000 cases), euronews.com (claimed over 11,000 lives, with 2014-2016 outbreak having at least 28,000 cases)