Fact Check

By Reuters Fact Check

6 Min Read

Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters included a flying inflatable pig with a Star of David on it at concerts at least 10 years ago, not at a show in Berlin in May 2023, as has been claimed online.

A photo of a black, porcine balloon with the religious symbol - which is synonymous with Judaism - as well as other symbols and graffiti on it dates to 2013, according to a spokesperson for Waters. Berlin police, who are investigating Rogers’ 2023 concerts in relation to a costume he wore, told Reuters they are unaware of any black inflatable pig with a Star of David on it having been flown during the shows.

However, one Facebook user uploaded the image (here) alongside the caption: "So apparently, THIS is what was on hand at Roger Waters' Berlin concert last night. Nah, nothing remotely antisemitic about a star of David on a pig."

Similar posts can be seen on Facebook (here) and Twitter (here).

News outlets have also included the picture in reports about one of Waters’ 2023 Berlin shows (here, archived: here) (here, archived: here).

Waters’ trademark use of inflatable pigs during his sets is inspired by Pink Floyd's 1977 album "Animals", which itself is loosely based on the George Orwell novel "Animal Farm", in which pigs are in charge. The "Animals" album cover art includes a porcine balloon (pinkfloyd.lnk.to/Animals) and the animal features in three of the album's five song names, with pigs representing wealth, authority and destruction, as the musician explained in a Sept. 2019 interview with Rolling Stone magazine (here).

The balloons at his performances, which have changed designs over time, often display political messages and are widely accepted as sometimes featuring people, organisations or ideas that Waters protests.

However, the black inflatable pig featuring a Star of David being shared online was not used during his Berlin shows on May 17 and 18, 2023.

Reuters was unable to verify the source of the photo circulating in May 2023, but it was included in a July 13, 2012, blog post (here) about one of Waters’ concerts in Washington D.C.

The same pig can be seen in a video uploaded to YouTube on July 19, 2013 (here). News reports suggest this footage was captured in Belgium (here and here).

Other videos show that Waters used a white pig, which did not feature a Star of David, in his 2023 Berlin shows (from 2:30: here) (from 1:40: here) (from 1:15:08: here).

The musician is being investigated by the police on suspicion of "incitement of the people" during his Berlin performances due to a Nazi-style costume he wore (here). The Pink Floyd co-founder has said its intent was to oppose fascism and bigotry (here).

However, Berlin Police told Reuters via email it had no knowledge of a black pig-shaped balloon being used in the May 17 and 18 performances.

"Nor are any investigations being conducted here regarding the use of a Star of David on such a balloon," chief inspector Martin Halweg added.

A spokesperson for Roger Waters said via email that the image of the inflatable pig with the Star of David on it is from 2013 and that the symbol is no longer used on the balloons.

The Pink Floyd co-founder did not mention the use of a Star of David in his statement about the Berlin concerts (here).

Miscaptioned. A black inflatable pig with a Star of David featured at Roger Waters’ concerts at least 10 years ago. It did not appear at Waters’ 2023 Berlin shows.

This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our fact-checking work (here).

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.