One of the more insidious factors in the spread of online disinformation has been the advent of “satirical” blogs that spread or republish each other’s content, among them World News Daily Report. As Buzzfeed reported, the blog was r
Publication: disinformation
Truth or Fiction?→ Was a Canadian Man ‘Euthanized’ After Not Receiving Enough Home Care Funding?
A 41-year-old Canadian man’s choice to undergo assisted suicide in August 2019 was used as blog fodder by an anti-abortion group based out of England. Sean Tagert first drew media coverage in September 2018, when he spoke to the Canadian Broadca
Truth or Fiction?→ Does Trump Have a 94 Percent Approval Rating with Republicans?
On September 9 2019, President Donald Trump used his Twitter account to push a claim of record popularity that has already been debunked by several news organizations. For the fourth time in three months, Trump boasted that he had a “94 percent&
Truth or Fiction?→ Did a Pastor Die After 30 Days of Fasting to Beat Jesus Christ’s Record?
In September 2019, an article with the headline “Pastor Dies After 30 Days of Fasting To Beat Jesus Record” appeared in several Facebook groups and users’ feeds: A South African pastor, Alfred Ndlovu has died of malnutrition after go
Truth or Fiction?→ Is the United States the 118th Safest Country in the World — Down From 65th in 2018?
A September 3 2019 tweet (shared to Facebook the following day) contained the alarming claim that the United States was ranked the 118th safest country in the world in 2019, dropping from the 65th spot in 2018: The United States is the 118th safest
Truth or Fiction?→ Did the Detective Who Led Jeffrey Epstein Investigation Die after a ‘Brief Illness’ At 50 in September 2019?
In early September 2019, a large number of Facebook users shared an article (archived here), compellingly titled “Detective Who Led Epstein Investigation Died After ‘Brief Illness’ At 50.” Based on the visible shares to Facebo
Truth or Fiction?→ Did a Swedish Scientist Propose Cannibalism to Fight Climate Change?
On September 7 2019, United States President Donald Trump retweeted a Breitbart.com post that suggested a Swedish scientist had proposed that cannibalism was a viable solution to fight climate change: Swedish behavioral scientist Magnus Söderlund h
Truth or Fiction?→ Jim Carrey Depression Meme: ‘I Believe Depression is Legitimate. But…’
A July 5 2019 Instagram post purportedly quoting actor Jim Carrey on depression appeared on Facebook in screenshot form. The original featured an image of the actor and attributed the following quote to him: View this post on Instagram
Truth or Fiction?→ Weather Agency Contradicts Itself Over Trump’s Hurricane ‘Forecast’
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) disavowed its own agency’s findings in a brief statement on September 6 2019, siding with United States President Donald Trump amid allegations that the president may have illegally alte
Truth or Fiction?→ Are School Bus Stops Now More Dangerous Because of an All-Time High in Human Trafficking?
A back-to-school themed Facebook warning shared on September 5 2019 (archived here) declared that all school-age children must avoid all school bus stops because of an increased threat of human trafficking: Against a pastel background, black text d
Truth or Fiction?→ Dear ‘Ban Gun’ Teenagers, 11 Teens Die a Day from Texting and Driving
Facebook status memes about guns in general consistently appear in the now nearly constant wake of mass shootings, but a February 2018 iteration (archived here) aimed at “‘ban gun’ teenagers” puts forth an insincere argument
Truth or Fiction?→ Are Japanese Students Exempt from Taking Exams Until the Fourth Grade?
Some social media users and blogs looking to criticize the American educational system have seized on citing its Japanese counterpart as an aspirational example. But at least one widely-circulated example hinges on a lack of context. The claim has bee
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘There are 30,000 Gun Related Deaths Per Year by Firearms’
In August 2019, a Facebook post about the United States’ purported 30,000 gun deaths per year circulated, typically copied and pasted into individual posts which themselves were each shared a handful of times. One particular version coupled with
Truth or Fiction?→ Tim Allen ‘Trump 2020 or America Is Dead’ Commentary
In late August and early September 2019, a number of Facebook users shared “pearls of wisdom” attributed to actor Tim Allen; topics discussed included United States President Donald Trump’s 2020 re-election campaign, the death of Ame
Truth or Fiction?→ Has ICE Refused to Deport Undocumented White Immigrants?
While the majority of attention on deportations by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency has centered around their actions against immigrants from Latin American countries, it is inaccurate to say that the agency does not
Truth or Fiction?→ Was Kevin Hart ‘Paralyzed’ in a Car Crash?
On September 2 2019, a blog seemingly devoted to ginning up traffic for “shocking videos” on a separate website made a detour into disinformation by attempting to capitalize on comedian Kevin Hart’s real-life auto accident. According
Truth or Fiction?→ Was Rep. Ilhan Omar Photographed at an ‘Al Qaeda Training Camp’?
A Twitter user was seemingly intent on spreading disinformation about Democratic Party Rep. Ilhan Omar on Twitter, even after the “proof” they presented was quickly debunked. In late August 2019, the account posted a photograph of a woman
Truth or Fiction?→ Did the Democratic Party Pass a Resolution ‘Against Christianity’?
A far-right Christian blog exaggerated the language of a Democratic National Committee resolution expressing support for people who do not practice any religion, painting it as an attack on the Christian faith itself. The post on Stream.org took issue
Truth or Fiction?→ Were the Bones of Children Found on Epstein’s Island?
On August 20 2019, the Facebook page “The Trump Room” shared the following post (archived here), claiming that children’s bones were found on Jeffrey Epstein’s private island and questioning why this had not been reported: W
Truth or Fiction?→ Did the Coroner Who Declared Jeffrey Epstein’s Death a Suicide Work for the Clinton Foundation Until 2015?
Rumors and conspiracies immediately followed the August 2019 jailhouse suicide of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, among them a Facebook post (archived here) claiming that the coroner who attended Epstein’s death worked for the Clinton F
Truth or Fiction?→ Was Dictator Joseph Stalin Once a Hip, Young Democratic Socialist?
A meme claiming that Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin was once a hip, young atheist and a Democratic Socialist appeared on Facebook (archived here) in August 2019. Beneath a black-and-white photograph of an arguably handsome young man, text read: Josef
Truth or Fiction?→ Instagram Copyright Hoax
A recurring online hoax spread even further on August 20 2019, when a wave of high-profile people posted a fake, long-debunked notice about Instagram’s terms of use that eventually ended up on Secretary of Energy Rick Perry’s Instagram ac
Truth or Fiction?→ Does Video Show Police Spraying Fake Blood on Themselves During a Philadelphia Shooting?
On August 15 2019, the conspiracy-oriented Facebook page “True News 4 U’s” shared a video (archived here) of police officers in Philadelphia purportedly spraying “fake blood” on themselves in the aftermath of a shooting.
Truth or Fiction?→ Did North Carolina Ban Sharia Law Statewide?
On July 29 2019, frequent Facebook disinformation purveyor Joseph Rudy Rullo posted a meme (archived here) claiming that North Carolina had banned sharia law. Above a map highlighting North Carolina, the meme read: NORTH CAROLINA HAS BANNED
Truth or Fiction?→ Did a Woman Post an Ad Offering to Babysit ‘White Kids Only’?
An apparent attempt at harassment against a woman in Cottage Grove, Oregon in August 2019 was amplified through social media on several platforms, and at least one blog post took the false claim at face value. A photograph of 31-year-old Amber Lee Hug
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Public Assistance Programs Exist in the United States Before Social Security?
In August 2019, disinformation and misinformation about the history of immigration to the United States flourished online following the announcement that United States President Donald Trump’s administration would pursue the so-called “pub
Truth or Fiction?→ Are the ‘Epstein Gurney Photos’ Fake?
Conspiracy theories circulated broadly and relentlessly after the August 10 2019 death of high-profile convicted sex offender and accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein in federal custody, including claims that widely published “gurney photos&#
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Cameras Malfunction in Prison the Night Jeffrey Epstein Died?
On August 10 2019, news broke that jailed financier and convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein died by suicide in a Metropolitan Correctional Center jail cell, immediately prompting a flood of conspiracy theories: Among those rumors was a claim
Truth or Fiction?→ Is This an Accurate Picture of 2019’s Mass Shooters?
Research in progress. Two days after the August 3 2019 El Paso, Texas mass shooting, in which the suspect expressed a range of violent white supremacist views, an image was posted to Reddit’s r/conspiracy (archived here) purportedly showing a
Truth or Fiction?→ Are El Paso Mass Shooting Victims or Their Families Avoiding Hospitals for Fear of Immigration Enforcement?
After at least 22 people were murdered in an August 3 2019 mass shooting at an El Paso, Texas mall, rumors flew as the country tried to get a handle on the violence and anticipated what could happen next. Chief among the rumors were claims that Immigr
Truth or Fiction?→ Is Donald Trump Deleting Anti-Immigrant Tweets?
As several mass shootings within just days of one another left the United States reeling, the ideologies of the shooters began to come under scrutiny for possible ties to sites that specialize in radicalizing disaffected young men into violent white
Truth or Fiction?→ Is This ‘a Feminist’ Exposing Herself to Students During a Field Trip?
In late July 2019, the following tweet appeared, claiming that the following image shows a “feminist” exposing herself to children on a school field trip: School kids recently went on a trip to a feminist "art exhibit" and this
Truth or Fiction?→ Do Asylum Seekers Get $2,100 Per Month Starting Their First Day in the United States?
On July 16 2019, the following text-based status update (archived here) appeared on Facebook with the uncited claim that asylum seekers admitted to the United States receive a $2,100 monthly payment — whereas by comparison, Americans who had paid i
Truth or Fiction?→ Was Ivanka Trump Photographed Wearing a Swastika Logo?
On July 23 2019, the Twitter account @ScenarioLENS shared the following image of Ivanka Trump, posing with a law enforcement agent in what looked like a strange, stylized swastika sweater: What the hell is she wearing?! pic.twitter.com/G3IZVFipkn &md
Truth or Fiction?→ Did George Washington Say Citizens Gain the Right to Unseat the Government if the Government Restricts Guns?
In May 2019, the Facebook page “McGroarty for Freedom” shared the following meme containing a quote attributed to George Washington concerning the rights of citizens to bear arms: Across a black background, white text read: “Wh
Truth or Fiction?→ A View of San Francisco ‘Yesterday’?
On July 20 2019 the Facebook page “The Modern Conservative” shared the following image, purportedly showing San Francisco the day before: Commenters lamented the purported state of the city underneath the photograph: SF is going downhil
Truth or Fiction?→ Is the Hotel Closest To Area 51 Fully Booked for the ‘Storm Area 51’ Event?
Buzz about the viral “Storm Area 51” Facebook event continued through July 2019, including an article on a site called AnonNews.co about a flurry of hotel bookings for the venue nearest the famed military installation: Despite the warnings
Truth or Fiction?→ Did United States President Barack Obama Remove a ‘Citizenship Question’ from the Census?
In July 2019, a Facebook user shared a text-based status update about the census-related “citizenship question,” which claimed that such a question had existed on the United States Census for 160 years — until President Obama outlawed
Truth or Fiction?→ Did ‘Leftist Protesters’ Scream ‘F*** the Troops’ at a Detention Facility Protest in Aurora?
On July 15 2019, Facebook user DC Draino and Twitter user @StClairAshley shared footage purportedly showing a confrontation between StClair and unnamed “leftist protesters” outside an immigration detention facility in Aurora, Colorado:
Truth or Fiction?→ Was the U.S. Women’s National Team Defeated by Teenaged Boys in a 2017 Soccer Match?
After the United States Women’s National Team beat the Netherlands 2 to 0 to win the World Cup in July 2019, the fans of the nation’s soccer team were delighted. It also lent serious heft to the players’ demand for pay and treatment