As Hurricane Ian churned toward Florida, a news clip predicting death and destruction tore its own path on social media. “See this? Melbourne, Daytona Beach, all the way up to […] The post Hurricane Matthew coverage from 2016 spread without
Publication: fact checking
Poynter→ United Facts of America’s focus turns to disinformation in health care and online
The three-day United Facts of America: A Festival of Fact-Checking, heads into its final day, Sept. 29, with a full slate of online presentations, headlined by a discussion of disinformation […] The post United Facts of America’s focus turns to
Poynter→ How memes can fuel political strategy
Memes, like jokes, are often depicted as mostly harmless and incapable of exerting political influence. But recent elections have demonstrated organizers can easily leverage them to build political movements, spread […] The post How memes can fue
Poynter→ Did House Democrats oust Nancy Pelosi? No.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in 2018 this year would be her last as the chamber’s Democratic leader, and there’s some speculation she might retire from Congress entirely. But a recent Facebook […] The post Did House Democrats oust Nancy
Poynter→ PBS NewsHour anchor Judy Woodruff will headline the second day of United Facts of America
The ways media — conventional and social — shape perceptions and filter facts dominated the opening sessions of the second annual United Facts of America conference. The three-day conference, co-presented […] The post PBS NewsHour anchor Judy
Poynter→ Experts say facts alone won’t bridge the partisan divide
The 2020 presidential election result is clear: Donald Trump lost. But fighting his stolen election narrative is a problem that requires a multipronged solution, three experts said Sept. 27 at […] The post Experts say facts alone won’t brid
Poynter→ How partisan television media fuels persistent echo chambers
How do you get dedicated Fox News viewers to drop Tucker Carlson for a month and change the channel? Researchers from the University of California, Berkeley and Yale University landed […] The post How partisan television media fuels persistent ec
Poynter→ Why does the Jan. 6 committee want to talk to Ginni Thomas?
Conservative activist Virginia “Ginni” Thomas will speak to the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol about her involvement in efforts to overturn the […] The post Why does the Jan. 6 commit
Poynter→ Can Donald Trump declassify documents with just a thought? Three legal precedents say no.
Former President Donald Trump attracted wide attention for his comments about presidential declassification powers in an interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity. Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home was searched in August by federal agents […] The post Ca
Poynter→ Tunisia’s ‘disinfo’ decree threatens to lock up rule violators
Tunisia just passed a law that would imprison purveyors of “disinformation” for up to five years. Critics of the law — which include political opponents of Tunisian President Kais Saied, […] The post Tunisia’s ‘disinfo’ decree threate
Poynter→ What is a MAGA Republican?
The dispute over what it means to be a MAGA Republican has given the GOP an opening to accuse President Joe Biden of “smearing” half the voters in the country — the roughly […] The post What is a MAGA Republican? appeared first o
Poynter→ How could voting be affected in the US if election deniers win?
Midterm ballots in nearly every state include candidates who believe the 2020 election was fraudulent or “stolen.” That leaves American election systems at a pivotal moment: If people who deny […] The post How could voting be affected
Poynter→ What George Soros said about Ukraine in a 2014 CNN interview
Billionaire philanthropist George Soros is a regular bogeyman in online misinformation. We’ve debunked claims that he’s a Nazi who funded antifa and protests in Minneapolis, and that he was behind a news website in Missouri […] The post
Poynter→ Will the “Inflation Reduction Act” reduce energy production?
In recent weeks, the realities of the climate crisis have become increasingly visible, from wildfires in California and throughout the Pacific Northwest to catastrophic flooding in Kentucky, which killed almost […] The post Will the “Inflation
Poynter→ Political extremism in the public square: A resource for journalists and voters
Disinformation about election processes and alleged election fraud is falsely stoking anger among voters who feel neglected by their government. That same disinformation — perpetuated by online elements and amplified […] The post Political extr
Poynter→ Green energy policies didn’t cause record prices at gas pumps
The spike in gasoline prices earlier this year had Republicans crying foul, blaming President Joe Biden and Democrats for the increase — even though they began rising in late 2020 under President Donald […] The post Green energy policies did
Poynter→ No, Trump’s lawyers did not quit in the Mar-a-Lago case
Former President Donald Trump’s legal woes have mounted since he left office, including criminal and civil investigations into the Trump Organization. The most recent example is a federal investigation into his handling […] The post No, Trump
Poynter→ How Twitter’s edit button could fuel the misinformation machine
In just 30 minutes, a single-word tweet from The Washington Post racked up 2,543 retweets and quote tweets. The post said, simply, “news.” The internet similarly went wild for other […] The post How Twitter’s edit button could fuel the misi
Poynter→ Why the recent COVID-19 boosters were authorized before human trials were completed
An updated COVID-19 booster shot is now available, as strains of the coronavirus continue to spread. President Joe Biden said Sept. 6 that the updated boosters are meant to provide […] The post Why the recent COVID-19 boosters were authorized bef
Poynter→ AFP debuts Spanish-language tip line in the US
Factually is a newsletter about fact-checking and misinformation from Poynter’s International Fact-Checking Network. Sign up here to receive it in your email every other Thursday. The news agency Agence France-Presse just launched a disinformatio
Poynter→ The party that controls the White House usually loses in midterm elections. Here’s what could make 2022 different.
The 2022 midterm campaign will barrel to a close eight weeks from now, on Nov. 8. What does history tell us about what to expect? And could 2022 diverge from […] The post The party that controls the White House usually loses in midterm elections.
Poynter→ 5 outlandish claims we’ve fact-checked about Queen Elizabeth II
What do the COVID-19 vaccine, superstar musician Prince and lizards have to do with Queen Elizabeth II? Nothing. But conspiracy theorists claim otherwise. After the news broke Sept. 8 about […] The post 5 outlandish claims we’ve fact-checked ab
Poynter→ Claims Queen Elizabeth died because of the COVID-19 vaccine spread without evidence
Over the years, PolitiFact has debunked several death hoaxes about Queen Elizabeth II, but on Sept. 8, Buckingham Palace announced that she had died at age 96. The royal family has not specified a cause […] The post Claims Queen Elizabeth di
Poynter→ Florida allowed people with felony records to register to vote. Now they face illegal voting charges.
After much debate in 2018, Floridians decided to amend the state’s constitution so certain felons — once out of prison — could regain the right to vote. Floridians were persuaded […] The post Florida allowed people with felony records to re
Poynter→ No, the National Institutes of Health didn’t add ivermectin to list of approved treatments for COVID-19
The National Institutes of Health has recommended against using ivermectin to treat COVID-19 except in clinical trials, but recent social media posts claim the federal agency has quietly OK’d the […] The post No, the National Institutes of Heal
Poynter→ Bank of America’s new home loan program does not exclude any race, despite claims that say otherwise
Bank of America unveiled a new loan program in Black and Hispanic neighborhoods to boost homeownership where it lags. Some of the news headlines made outlandish, unproven claims about the scope of […] The post Bank of America’s new home loan
Poynter→ Fact-checkers respond to Twitter’s new edit feature
Twitter rolled out a test version of its long-awaited edit button for some users last week. The button allows users to edit already sent tweets, a feature that Twitter leadership […] The post Fact-checkers respond to Twitter’s new edit feature
Poynter→ A surprising number of Americans believe these 6 false claims about immigrants. Here are the facts.
As the November midterm elections near, political candidates and TV ads are pushing inaccurate and misleading claims about immigration. And according to an NPR/Ipsos poll, a significant number of Americans believe these […] The post A surprisin
Poynter→ Unpacking Tom Cotton’s misleading tweet about ranked choice voting in Alaska
Critics of ranked choice voting are using Democrat Mary Peltola’s win of Alaska’s House seat to distort the new method of casting votes. Peltola defeated two Republicans: Sarah Palin and […] The post Unpacking Tom Cotton’s misleading tw
Poynter→ A viral post falsely claims Fox News sought the legal right to lie
A viral post recycled an old claim that Fox News Channel is officially registered as an entertainment outlet — not an authentic news organization. To build the case, the post […] The post A viral post falsely claims Fox News sought the legal ri
Poynter→ Prebunking is effective at fighting misinfo, study finds
Factually is a newsletter about fact-checking and misinformation from Poynter’s International Fact-Checking Network. Sign up here to receive it in your email every other Thursday. A study that dropped last week strongly suggests […] The po
Poynter→ Businesses associated with these GOP politicians had pandemic loan program borrowings forgiven
Conservative politicians have condemned President Joe Biden’s plan to cancel certain student debt. U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., said it would be unfair to people who didn’t take on loan or who […] The post Businesses associated with the
Poynter→ Is Joe Biden’s student debt forgiveness plan legal?
President Joe Biden has made a long-awaited decision on how to handle student debt. On Aug. 24 Biden announced that his administration will waive student loan debt for qualifying Americans […] The post Is Joe Biden’s student debt forgiveness pl
Poynter→ Statistics about Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan, fact-checked
As soon as President Joe Biden announced his plan to forgive student loan debt for millions of Americans, facts and figures streamed across the internet projecting the plan’s impact. The […] The post Statistics about Biden’s student loan
Poynter→ ‘All they had to do was ask,’ said Trump: A timeline of efforts to retrieve presidential records
Former President Donald Trump took to Truth Social on Aug. 12 to complain about the FBI’s unannounced search at his Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach, Florida, days earlier. The agents […] The post ‘All they had to do was ask,’ said Trump: A ti
Poynter→ No, this isn’t a real chyron about ‘gay hypnosis’ on Tucker Carlson’s show
A photo of a television tuned to Fox News appears to show a surprising chyron on “Tucker Carlson Tonight.” “Straight men turning homo after ‘gay hypnosis,’” the text says below […] The post No, this isn’t a real chyr
Poynter→ Repustar debuts a tip line tool for US fact-checking organizations
Repustar, a fact-checking organization that crowdsources fact checks, is partnering with journalism and fact-checking outlets in the US to provide both fact checks to the public and verifiable claims to […] The post Repustar debuts a tip line too
Poynter→ A viral list of ‘banned’ books in Florida is satire
In recent weeks, social media users have criticized Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over his policies to crack down on classroom instruction around LGBTQ issues and race. The latest instance might […] The post A viral list of ‘banned’ books in Flor
Poynter→ Claim that Congress members exempted themselves from IRS audits started as satire
Following the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, which sets aside about $46 billion for increased Internal Revenue Service enforcement, some social media posts claim members of Congress gave themselves immunity from […] The post Claim that
Poynter→ Articles about health problems unrelated to COVID-19 vaccines
Six news articles being shared on social media feature a scary suggestion: that the health problems they mention were caused by COVID-19 vaccines. “Don’t worry, it’s all just a big […] The post Articles about health problems unrelated t