Amid a series of December 17 2019 demonstrations in the United States marking a vote on whether to impeach U.S. President Donald Trump, one Twitter user attempted to troll the protests by passing off a photograph of a different event. The user, ̶
Publication: Fact Checks
Truth or Fiction?→ Downward Tilting Toilet
On December 2019, Twitter and Facebook were flush with posts about a downward tilted toilet — purportedly designed to be unbearable to sit upon for more than five minutes — installed by employers to discourage lengthy bathroom breaks: BREAKI
Truth or Fiction?→ Ahoy, Matey: Book Excerpt Fuels Surge of Interest in Same-Sex Pirate Partnerships
In December 2019, a graphic circulated online that questioned the dominant narrative on (and perhaps had some readers rethinking their views about) the pirate culture of the 17th century. A photograph, taken from the 2019 book The Queeriodic Table:
Truth or Fiction?→ NYT, 1932: ‘German Centrists’ Believe Nazis Allowed to Participate Will Become More Moderate?
In an ongoing online debate over whether centrists enable fascists, a December 16 2019 tweet purportedly showed an authentic New York Times article from 1932, which reported that “German centrists” believed that Nazis would become “
Truth or Fiction?→ Did the U.S. Department of Defense Display an Image of a Nazi on the 75th Anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge?
On December 16 2019, social media accounts affiliated with the United States military put up the following image with a post attached to it commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge: The photograph showed a Nazi war criminal, SS-S
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Supreme Court Can Extend Trump’s Term By Up To 3 Years If He’s Acquitted In The Senate’ Facebook Share
A December 12 2019 article with the headline, “Supreme Court Can Extend Trump’s Term By Up To 3 Years If He’s Acquitted In The Senate” spread widely on social media — particularly Facebook — in the days after it appeared. It cla
Truth or Fiction?→ Was an ‘Anti-Semitic’ Bernie Sanders Shirt Sold at the DNC in 2016?
On December 13 2019, in the wake of a column accusing Sen. Bernie Sanders (who is Jewish) of having an “anti-Semitism problem,” several people came forward to claim that a T-shirt with an anti-Semitic caricature of Sanders was sold at the
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Michael Bloomberg Supporters Invent Their Own ‘Dance’?
On December 12, 2019, Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg’s campaign got viral attention online — though probably not in a way they anticipated, thanks to comedians Nick Ciarelli and Brad Evans. “Look out #TeamPete becaus
Truth or Fiction?→ Fresh Snow Absorbs Sound
On December 12 2019, the Facebook page “Weird Facts” shared the following meme about how fresh snow “absorbs” sound: Underneath an image of a snowy street, text read: Fresh snow absorbs sound, lowering ambient noise
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Medicare for All? How Are We Gonna Pay for That? With THIS Money’ Post
On December 12 2019, the Facebook page “Fully Automated Luxury Gay Space Communism” shared the following screenshot of a retweet opining that a $738 billion expenditure for defense (and a Space Force) could be used to fund Medicare for A
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Boris Johnson Hide in a Refrigerator to Escape a Live Television Interview?
The UK’s prime minister created an awkward moment for himself on live television on December 11 2019, just one day before the country’s high-stakes general election. Footage of the episode shows Boris Johnson retreating into a freezer aft
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Velocity of Money’ Tumblr Post
On December 10 2019, the Facebook page “The Other 98%” shared a Tumblr screenshot of a discussion of a concept described as the “velocity of money”: In it, the first of two comments claimed that a unit of $10 as handled by
Truth or Fiction?→ President Donald Trump’s 32 Percent Approval Rating per CBS Poll vs. ‘Paul Blart: Mall Cop’ at 33 Percent per Rotten Tomatoes?
On December 8 2019, the Facebook page “Dadmin” shared a photograph of a woman holding a protest sign, purportedly comparing United States President Donald Trump’s approval rate (32 percent) with that of the film Paul Blart: Mall Cop
Truth or Fiction?→ Has ICE Refused Even Donated Flu Shot Vaccines for Detainees?
On December 5 2019, Twitter lit up with rumors and tweets that Immigration and Customs Enforcement refused to offer “even donated flu shots” for detainees in its custody: ICE has refused even donated flu shots. This is exactly how the
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Uber Receive 235 Reports of Rape and 5,981 Reports of Sexual Abuse?
On December 8 2019, the Facebook page “Feminists United” shared a screenshot of the following tweet about 235 reports of rape purportedly received by Uber in a year: For every man that doesn't understand why women are fed up. Last
Truth or Fiction?→ Did a ‘Drunk Crop Duster’ Pilot Dump 4 Tons of Manure over Kansas?
In December 2019, myriad Facebook posts shared an article claiming that a “drunk crop duster” pilot spread four tons of manure across Kansas: El Dorado, Kansas | An agricultural airplane pilot made a serious mistake this morning while oper
Truth or Fiction?→ A Holiday Debunking: Comparing Trump and Obama’s Treatment of ‘Merry Christmas’
As the ginned-up “War on Christmas” has become an annual fixation among the American right wing, a parallel has emerged for critics of United States President Donald Trump, who have seized on the season to tweak him by comparing him to his
Truth or Fiction?→ Do You Need to Remove Barcodes from Donated Toys Because People Exchange Them for Cigarettes and Beer?
On December 9 2019, a number of news outlets published a syndicated article with the headlines “Donating Toys This Holiday Season? You Might Want to Remove the Barcode,” or, alternately, “Remove The Barcode If You’re Donating
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Butt Plug’ Christmas Tree in Paris
In December 2019 a number of Facebook users shared photographs and memes depicting a purportedly modernist Christmas tree in Paris, France — which also happened to resemble a giant version of a certain type of sex toy: In the post above, atop a p
Truth or Fiction?→ UPS Thanks Police for Killing Driver Frank Ordonez
On December 5 2019 — after law enforcement officers in south Florida shot and killed a hostage, a bystander, and two suspected thieves during a daytime shootout in a busy intersection during rush hour — a number of popular tweets claimed that UPS
Truth or Fiction?→ Current World Food Production is Enough to Feed 10 Billion People, Starvation isn’t Profitable to Solve?
Amid election primary policy debates in December 2019, a post about current world food production being sufficient to feed more than three times the world’s population circulated on Facebook in screenshot form: Labeled “when you
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Jeff Bezos Didn’t Donate $100M LOL, He Took $100M of Amazon Stock and ‘Donated’ it to His Own Charity’ Meme
On November 25 2019, Twitter user @TheyCallMeChew tweeted about the controversial donation by Amazon chief executive officer Jeff Bezos of nearly $100 million to homelessness charities, claiming that the donation was not what it seemed: Jeff Bezos
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘I Don’t Think People Fully Understand How Much 1 Billion Is’ Tweet
A November 2019 Facebook screenshot of a tweet claiming that people typically “don’t understand how much a billion is,” is one of many similar viral social media posts about the relative worth of a billion dollars, and discourse arou
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Mike Pence Use ‘Mulan’ to ‘Prove’ Women Should Not Be in the Military?
Hours before Disney released the first trailer for a live-action adaptation of the film Mulan, social media users marked the occasion by recalling United States Vice President Mike Pence’s attack on the movie during his days as a member of the
Truth or Fiction?→ Unsolicited Card Reader Warning
In October 2016, a Facebook user shared the following image of a purported “unsolicited card reader,” along with a nebulous warning to fellow users about the purported receipt of a an unexpected banking device in the mail: An image shows
Truth or Fiction?→ A Fun Series of Events in Finland
On December 3 2019, Twitter user Matt Bruenig tweeted about a “fun series of events in Finland”: A fun series of events in Finland: 1. Postal service cuts pay of 700 sorters. 2. Strike called. 60k workers join in solidarity, shutting do
Truth or Fiction?→ Andrew Yang ‘Pathway to Citizenship (Make Them Earn It)’ Policy Statement?
In December 2019, an image appeared that purportedly showed a policy page on Andrew Yang’s Yang2020.com website with the subheading “Make Them Earn It” under the title “Pathway to Citizenship”: The fuzzy image, which was
Truth or Fiction?→ Was a Starbucks ‘PIG’ Cup Debate Amplified by a Police Chief’s Daughter?
An online dispute surrounding an unidentified police officer in Oklahoma and a local Starbucks took a turn in late November 2019 when someone claiming to be related to the officer’s supervisor chimed in on the side of police critics. “This
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Whole Foods Holiday Food Drive’ Post
A December 2 2019 Facebook status update excoriating Amazon and Whole Foods over a purported holiday food drive (and advising customers to move unpurchased items to the “donations” section) struck a chord and racked up tens of thousands of
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Obama Bowing to a Terrorist’ Post
On November 1 2019, a Facebook user shared the following screenshot, which included a purported photograph of former United States President Barack Obama bowing deeply to an unidentified man in a turban: In a solitary comment on the post, the user cl
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Casey Anthony Pregnant with Twins’ Rumor
In December 2019, a rumor Casey Anthony was pregnant with twins swept Facebook, and a circulating article claimed: Casey Anthony, the woman famously acquitted in 2011 of murdering her daughter Caylee, is confirmed to be pregnant again. This time with
Truth or Fiction?→ Are Private Prisons Suing States for Millions of Contract Quotas?
A long-popular October 2018 Facebook post continued spreading through late 2019, alleging that private prisons were suing states over unmet contract quotas promising a minimum number of profitable inmates. A status update read “SO WE JUST NOT GO
Truth or Fiction?→ Was Trump Filmed After ‘Forgetting to Wear His Toupee’?
A Twitter prankster released a video mocking United States President Donald Trump on Twitter on November 29 2019, though it gained less attention than a previous effort. The nine-second clip was edited to show the president removing a baseball cap to
Truth or Fiction?→ Federal Deficit $585 Billion in January 2017 Versus $984 Billion in January 2019
On December 1 2019, the Facebook page “Impeach Trump” shared the following meme, which contrasted the purported federal deficit on January 20 2017 (1/20/17, President Trump’s inauguration), with that of January 20 2019 (1/20/19, two
Truth or Fiction?→ Do Images Show Tears of Grief, Tears of Change, Onion Tears, and Laughing Tears?
In December 2019, a months-old post by the Facebook page “Words of Women” that purportedly showed a four-square collection of tears produced by grief, change, laughter, and cutting onions continued to circulate: The status updat
Truth or Fiction?→ Was Rep. Ilhan Omar ‘Recruited by a Foreign Government’?
On November 25 2019, the co-founder of a far-right group supporting United States President Donald Trump took to Twitter to misrepresent allegations against Democratic Party Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota. Ryan Fournier, a leader of the group Students F
Truth or Fiction?→ Dyslexie Font
In November 2017, the Facebook page “Feminist Info” shared a screenshot describing a font called “Dyslexie,” designed for people with dyslexia: That screenshot read: The Dyslexie font Graphic designer Christian Boer
Truth or Fiction?→ The Good Advice Hidden in a ‘Fun Funeral Facts’ Meme
Pointed advice in a popular Facebook meme are solid advice for consumers facing the tough decisions that come with the bereavement process, two experts told us. “People make the mistake of walking into the funeral home and treating the funeral h
Truth or Fiction?→ Was Jeff Bezos’ $98 Million ‘Gift’ to Homeless the Equivalent of $45 to a Person Earning $50,000 Annually?
On November 23 2019 @EatTheRichPod shared the following tweet, referencing volumes of laudatory headlines about Amazon chief executive officer Jeff Bezos donating $98 million to homeless people — asserting that Bezos’ generosity was equivalen
Truth or Fiction?→ Is This an Actually Photograph of an Albino Painted Wood Turtle?
A colorful photograph circulating online in November 2019 may be authentic, but experts we talked to suggested that readers should be wary of the source material. The striking photo was featured on Science and Space, a blog that has no bylines and no