Norris, now 80, has been a frequent subject of hoaxes over the years.
Publication: covid-19
Truth or Fiction?→ Facebook Fact-Checking Platform Dangerously Labels Mask Meme ‘False,’ Discourages Use of Masks Against Expert Guidelines
In May 2020 — in the middle of a global COVID-19 pandemic — a screenshot of a dangerously misapplied Facebook fact-checking flag began circulating which falsely and dangerously contradicts best practices around the use of masks in public p
Snopes→ Is Italy Calling for Bill Gates’ Arrest?
While an Italian politician truly did call for Bill Gates to be arrested, this position has not been endorsed by the Italian government.
Snopes→ Is Hand Sanitizer Effective After Its Expiration Date?
Questions about the longevity of hand sanitizers arose after the product started flying off store shelves during the COVID-19 coronavirus disease pandemic.
Snopes→ More Must Be Done to Fight Bogus COVID-19 Cure Claims
Fake and bogus cure claims are a longstanding but neglected public health problem.
Snopes→ ‘COVID Toes,’ Other Rashes Are Latest Possible Rare Virus Signs
Skin doctors suddenly are looking at a lot of toes — whether by emailed picture or video visit — as concern grows that for some people, a sign of COVID-19 may pop up in an unusual spot.
Snopes→ Masks Help Stop the Spread of Coronavirus – The Science Is Simple
Universal mask-wearing could be one of the most important tools in tackling the spread of COVID-19.
Snopes→ Did Melinda Gates Wear an Upside-Down Cross?
Critics claimed the billionaire philanthropist purposefully donned the symbol in video interviews about the COVID-19 pandemic.
Snopes→ Are the Unvaccinated Being Forcibly Rounded up in Oklahoma?
An outdated conspiracy video about FEMA camps and vaccines gained new life amid 2020 pandemic worries.
Snopes→ Is This a 1918 Quarantine Ad for the Bell Telephone?
We'll say this much: This is a real advertisement from the New York phone company.
Snopes→ Are Democratic Legislators ‘Giddy’ Over COVID-19 Economic Fallout?
A classic example of what's called "copypasta" spreading unfounded rumors on social media.
Truth or Fiction?→ Is Ulta Paying Employees for the Duration of the COVID-19 Pandemic?
On May 10 2020, Ulta Beauty became the subject of a viral Facebook post claiming that the chain continued paying their furloughed employees for the duration of the pandemic: In what appeared to be originally a friends-locked post, the alliterativel
Snopes→ Are Vegetarians Safe from COVID-19?
A claim alleges the World Health Organization found that vegetarians are unaffected by COVID-19 because the virus survives in animal fat.
Snopes→ Coronavirus: Why the Math Behind ‘COVID Alert Levels’ Makes No Sense
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Twitter account released a number of “infographics” which are, quite frankly, baffling.
Snopes→ NIH director: Large-Scale Vaccine Testing Expected by July
At least four or five possible vaccines “look pretty promising,” National Institutes of Health Director Francis Collins told the Associated Press.
Snopes→ Who’s in Charge of Lifting Lockdowns?
In the absence of nationwide coordination and leadership, governors have made their own decisions about how to contain the spread of the virus.
Truth or Fiction?→ Were Pride Parades Cancelled Over COVID-19 Without Sparking Armed Protests?
Right-wing personality Tomi Lahren’s attempt to criticize “liberals” on Twitter was refuted when several other users pointed out that she was attempted to gin up controversy that was already moot. “To the pro-eternal shutdown c
Snopes→ Did Trump Say More COVID-19 Testing Makes the US Look Bad?
The president has been accused of forgetting the people behind the coronavirus case numbers.
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Striking’ Photograph of Children Playing in ‘Chalk Squares’ During Coronavirus Pandemic
On May 12 2020, the following image of small children separated by “chalk squares” on a playground during the COVID-19 pandemic began circulating: In a caption on the above iteration, the user wrote “Their reality …,” bu
Snopes→ Did Fauci Warn Trump in 2017 That a ‘Surprise Outbreak’ Was Coming?
Dr. Anthony Fauci has led the NIAID for more than three decades, advising five U.S. presidents on global health threats.
Snopes→ Do Flu Vaccines Increase Your Risk of Testing Positive for COVID-19?
Anti-vaccine advocates, including Dr. Rashid Buttar, have seized on the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic to spread misinformation.
Snopes→ Did Elon Musk Tweet a Dessert Picture from a Restaurant Amid COVID-19 Restrictions?
He posted the photo of an ice cream sundae from Buca di Beppo Italian Restaurant while stay-at-home orders were in effect.
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Gov. Gretchen Whitmer Say Any Protester Carrying a Firearm Will Be Arrested?
A British tabloid’s story on a right-wing demonstration in Michigan circulated via social media with a headline with a much different connotation than the one actually seen on its website. For Facebook users, the Daily Mail’s story on a Ma
Snopes→ US Immunologist Warns of ‘Darkest Winter’ If Coronavirus Rebounds
Immunologist Dr. Rick Bright made his prediction in testimony prepared for his appearance before the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
Snopes→ Wisconsin High Court Tosses Out Governor’s Stay-Home Order
While the decision lifts caps on the size of gatherings, allowing people to travel and allowing shuttered businesses to reopen, the court let stand language that had closed schools. Local governments can still impose their own health restrictions.
Snopes→ 36 Million Have Sought US Unemployment Aid Since Coronavirus Hit
While nearly 3 million additional people applied for job aid, the number of first-time applications has now declined for six straight weeks.
Snopes→ Did Trump Tweet That Obama ‘Had 8 Years to Prepair the Next President for a Pandemic’?
A false Republican talking point was encapsulated in a fake tweet attributed to President Donald Trump.
Snopes→ Did the US Surgeon General Recommend the Public Not Wear Masks?
Jerome Adams' comments from early 2020 were re-shared and went viral months after he changed his opinion about the benefit of wearing COVID-19 protective masks.
Snopes→ Did the Obama Administration Fail to Prepare a Pandemic ‘Game Plan’?
Tactics and key policy decisions were laid out in a 69-page National Security Council playbook on fighting pandemics put together in 2016.
Snopes→ Does This Restaurant Receipt Show a COVID-19 Surcharge?
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused prices for meat and proteins to climb across the board.
Snopes→ Did Woodstock Occur During a Pandemic as Lethal as COVID-19?
Over the span of 18 months, the 1968 influenza pandemic killed approximately 100,000 people in the U.S.
Snopes→ ‘Plandemic’ Virus Consipracy-Theory Video Shows Challenges for Big Tech
One by one, tech companies across Silicon Valley scrambled to take down a slickly produced video of a discredited researcher peddling a variety of conspiracy theories about the coronavirus.
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Woodstock Occur ‘in the Middle of a Pandemic’?
On May 1 2020, the American Institute for Economic Research reported that Woodstock was held during a pandemic — information which, in a vacuum, could pass for a charming piece of late 1960s nostalgia. But this information does not exist in a
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Incredibly Terrible’: L.A. Times’ ‘Mutant Coronavirus’ Story Put Under The Microscope
A Los Angeles Times story reporting the appearance of a “dominant” new strain of COVID-19 has prompted criticism for relying on a document that had not been vetted through a traditional peer-review process. The May 5 2020 story covers the
Snopes→ Is This a PSA About Reopening the Economy?
Sometimes it is all too easy for us to consider deaths as a mere abstraction or statistic — as something that happens to other faceless, people.
Snopes→ Is California Separating Children from Parents Who Have COVID-19?
Someone apparently was hell-bent on scaring families with false rumors during the already stressful coronavirus pandemic.
Snopes→ Can Able-Bodied People Use This ADA ‘Mask Loophole’ in Stores?
For the record, Americans without disabilities are not protected by the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Snopes→ Does H.R. 6666 Authorize Removing COVID-19 Patients from Their Homes?
Viral posts claimed that proposed legislation by U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush would supersede constitutional rights during the coronavirus disease pandemic.
Snopes→ Can You Defy Pandemic Shutdown Orders and Collect Damages?
Involuntary measures to control disease have a long history in North America.
Snopes→ Fauci Warns of ‘Suffering and Death’ if US Reopens Too Soon
The United States has seen at least 1.3 million infections and nearly 81,000 confirmed deaths from the virus, the highest toll in the world by far, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.