The head of the White House’s response to COVID-19, Dr. Ashish K. Jha, downplayed the importance of local mask mandates in December 2022 — going into the third year of the global pandemic — even as he claimed it was not an “eith
Publication: TruthOrFiction
Truth or Fiction?→ Police Describe Member of Elon Musk’s Security Team as ‘Suspect’ in ‘Stalker’ Incident
On December 21 2022, an Imgur user shared a screenshot of the following tweet, asserting that a member of Elon Musk’s security team had been deemed a “suspect” in an incident Musk tweeted about earlier in December 2022: Overall, the
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘I Wish Iraqi Journalist Muntadhar Al-Zaidi a Very Pleasant Anniversary of the Time He Threw a Shoe at George W. Bush’
On December 20 2022, an Imgur account shared a screenshot that purportedly showed Iraqi journalist Muntadhar al-Zaidi thanking someone who wished him a “very pleasant anniversary of the time he threw a shoe at President George W. Bush” on
Truth or Fiction?→ Elon Musk, Jared Kushner at World Cup in Qatar
On December 18 2022, a photograph purportedly showing Twitter’s new chief executive officer Elon Musk with Jared Kushner at the World Cup was shared to r/pics, later rising to the top spot on r/all: Elon Musk hanging out with Jared Kus
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Cast Down The Mighty, Send The Rich Away’
An anti-capitalist Biblical message out of a church in New Zealand is getting quite a lot of attention online. “I’m quite amazed how much beef we’re getting that this sign is not Christmassy,” Dean Jay Ruka said of the sign outs
Truth or Fiction?→ A Brief History of New York Times Crossword Puzzle Swastikas
On December 19 2022, an Imgur account shared a screenshot of a tweet claiming that the December 18 2022 New York Times crossword puzzle was in the shape of a swastika: .@NYTimes Last straw. On the first night of Hanukkah?! I’m done with you. It’
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘We Took Police At Their Word’: Florida News Outlets Fuel Latest Police ‘Overdose’ Story
A story out of Florida in December 2022 quickly gained traction online and made it to the national spotlight, becoming the latest story to push the claim — contrary to medical expertise — that even brief exposure to fentanyl can induce an o
Truth or Fiction?→ TikTok ‘Angel Cut,’ ‘Angel Cut With Layers’ Explained
On December 11 2022, TikTok hair influencer Leda Fazal (@ledafazal) shared a clip about an “angel cut” or “angel cut with layers,” one of many purported secret signals aimed at assisting victims of domestic violence or human tra
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘First Recorded Snowball Fight’
A December 11 2022 tweet from History in Pictures (@HistoryInPics) purportedly depicted the first recorded snowball fight in 1897: First ever recorded snowball fight (1897) pic.twitter.com/c6t6A0Mgo0 — History In Pictures (@HistoryInPics) Decem
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Dear Teacher’ Letter Explaining Christmas Goes Viral on Twitter
On December 13 2022, a Twitter account going by @JewWhoHasItAll published a satirical “Dear Teacher” letter, describing Christmas and Christian traditions to putative school employees. A Twitter bio for @JewWhoHasItAll provided context suf
Truth or Fiction?→ Indiana College Chancellor Apologizes After ‘Made-Up Asian’ Remark Comes to Light
The head of a Purdue University campus quickly backtracked after footage of him making an anti-Asian “joke” in December 2022 gained more attention on social media. Chancellor Thomas L. Keon’s outburst during a commencement ceremony wa
Truth or Fiction?→ Original Lyrics to ‘Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas’
In December 2022, TikTok user @realityshowreject shared a video about the original lyrics to “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” stating that Judy Garland objected to them: @realityshowreject Does Christmas make anyone else incredibl
Truth or Fiction?→ Ex-WWE Head Vince McMahon Planning ‘Comeback’: Report
The disgraced former public face of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is mulling over a return to public life even as sexual assault allegations against him persist, according to a Wall Street Journal report. The newspaper reported that representativ
Truth or Fiction?→ Study Contrasts COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy, Traffic Crash Risk
On December 13 2022, a post to Reddit’s r/science posted a link to a study examining a possible link between COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and the likelihood of car crashes: Adults who neglect COVID-19 health recommendations may also neg
Truth or Fiction?→ Conspiracy-Slinging Republican Claims ‘Sarcasm’ After January 6 Remarks Were Caught on Video
Right-wing Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Georgia) claimed that she was being “sarcastic” when she told a GOP group that they “would have won” if she had organized the January 6 2021 coup attempt against the United States govern
Truth or Fiction?→ A Crowd Booed Elon Musk at a Dave Chappelle Show
On December 11 2022, newly-minted Twitter owner Elon Musk joined comedian Dave Chappelle on stage in San Francisco, leading to an immediate chorus of “boos” from the crowd. As is often the case, Musk’s appearance at Chappelle’s
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Twitter Files’ Round 2: Bari Weiss Edition
Conservative columnist Bari Weiss became the second person to receive “Twitter Files” documents from Twitter’s then-new CEO Elon Musk in December 2022. This generated quite a lot of exceptionally vague controversy, as well as discussi
Truth or Fiction?→ Michigan Republican Leaves State Senate Regurgitating ‘Great Replacement’ Smears
A normally sedate occasion gave outgoing Michigan Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey the opportunity to instead peddle highly weaponized conspiracy theories and disinformation campaigns. “I can see things that are about to happen or are going to
Truth or Fiction?→ Charlie Kirk Reads Messages From Georgians Bragging About Not Voting?
On December 8 2022, two Imgur accounts shared screenshots of a popular tweet which claimed that right-wing pundit and disinformation purveyor Charlie Kirk spent the first hour of his online show “reading emails from his listeners who said they d
Truth or Fiction?→ Germany Arrests 25 in Coup Plot
On December 7 2022, 25 people in Germany were arrested in early morning raids in connection with an alleged plot to overthrow the government: Germany arrests 25 accused of plotting to overthrow the government from worldnews In
Truth or Fiction?→ Wolfenstein Twitter Controversy, Explained
On December 5 2022, a popular post to Reddit’s r/WhitePeopleTwitter addressed the “Wolfenstein” video game franchise — more specifically, purported complaints that the game had become overtly “political”:
Truth or Fiction?→ DeSantis Lawyers ‘Define Woke’
On December 3 2022, tweets and posts appeared about attorneys for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) being “forced” to define the popular descriptor “woke,” purportedly responding that it was “the belief there are systemi
Truth or Fiction?→ Moore County Substation Attack: What We Know So Far
On the night of December 3 2022, residents of North Carolina’s Moore County lost power; subsequently, the Moore County Sheriff’s Office published a Facebook post indicating that the loss of power was being investigated as a “criminal
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘I Hope They Are Better Prepared’: Experts Raise Alarm on Trump-Fuentes-Ye Meeting Coverage
The multimedia spectacle touched off by the meeting between former United States President Donald Trump and white supremacist Nick Fuente has already stirred concerns around how larger media outlets will handle the further incursion of extreme right-wi
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Tax Refund Shock’
On December 1 2022, an Imgur user shared a screenshot of a news article reporting that 2023 U.S. tax refunds (that is, filed in 2023 for the year 2022) might “shock” filers: That claim alone was provocative, as many Americans rely on annu
Truth or Fiction?→ ’88 Words’
On November 30 2022, tweets about a Republican fundraising email containing the phrase “88 words” appeared: I hate playing “gotcha” — regardless of the side. But I’m striving to understand why — during week of Trump/Kanye/Fuente
Truth or Fiction?→ The Rail Strike, Explained
On November 30 2022, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill aimed at preventing a railroad strike ahead of the holiday season — although the matter was not yet fully settled: The House on Wednesday [November 30 2022] resoundingly approve
Truth or Fiction?→ New Movie Revives the Unlikely Legend of Kentucky’s ‘Cocaine Bear’
The weird-but-true story of a doomed (but possibly briefly very excited) black bear looks to become an even weirder movie in 2023. The trailer for the movie Cocaine Bear appeared on November 30 2022, accompanied on some platforms by the titular star s
Truth or Fiction?→ Twitter No Longer Enforcing COVID Misinformation Policy
On November 29 2022, a post to Reddit’s r/news claimed that Twitter had stopped enforcing its policy on disinformation and misinformation around COVID-19: Twitter is no longer enforcing its Covid misinformation policy from news
Truth or Fiction?→ An Arizona County Won’t Certify Election Results After 2022 Midterms
On November 29 2022, an Imgur account shared a text-based image containing the claim that a county in Arizona is refusing to certify the results of the November 2022 midterm election: The text said: A thing is going on in Arizona. A few counties, wher
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Established Titles’ Controversy
On November 23 2022, YouTube creator Scott Shafer uploaded a video partly titled “Established Titles Scam -YouTube’s BIGGEST Con,” about a common sponsor of YouTube shows (the company Established Titles) and whether their business mo
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Died Suddenly’ and the ‘Irish Light’
On November 22 2022, posts and tweets suddenly began to reference a new issue of a purported newspaper (the Irish Light), and its ominous-sounding “Died Suddenly” cover: The Died Suddenly edition of the Irish light is out now. pic.twitte
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Buffalo, NY. Look at All That Snow 😱 ❄️’
A massive snowstorm on November 20 2022 in Buffalo, New York in turn caused a veritable blizzard of images of staggering quantities of snow to circulate across platforms, among them a viral Facebook post purportedly showing the aftermath of the storm a
Truth or Fiction?→ Is the Suspected Colorado Shooter the Grandson of a ‘GOP California State Assemblyman’?
On November 21 2022, in the days following a mass shooting attack at the LGBTQ Club Q in Colorado Springs that left at least five people dead, screenshots circulated on Reddit and Imgur (twice) of a tweet claiming that the suspected shooter was the gr
Truth or Fiction?→ How to Fight Disinformation — Part V: Resilience Targeting
This is the last in a series about how communities can fight back and protect themselves against weaponized disinformation campaigns. You can read our previous articles here: Part I: Firehosing Part II: Gaslighting Part III: Distraction Part IV: Sign
Truth or Fiction?→ Here’s Where the Justice Department Will Monitor the Midterm Election Polls
The Department of Justice (DOJ) will monitor polls in Maricopa County, Arizona — which has seen an influx of armed right-wing operatives harassing voters — as well as polls in 63 other locations across the United States in the November 8 20
Truth or Fiction?→ Were Elon Musk and Donald Trump Both Complaining About ‘Activists’?
As criticism mounted surrounding Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter, a comedy writer gained attention on the platform with a post that had other users comparing Musk to right-wing former United States President Donald Trump. On November 4 2022, Musk
Truth or Fiction?→ Tulsa Donut Hole Firebombed After Hosting Drag Event
On November 3 2022, a viral tweet with video indicated that Tulsa, Oklahoma’s Donut Hole was firebombed “after hosting a drag show”: The Donut Hole in Tulsa, Oklahoma was firebombed after it hosted a drag show. This is the inevitabl
Truth or Fiction?→ Ottawa’s Right-Wing ‘Freedom Convoy’ Was Assisted by Canadian Police and Federal Officials
The right-wing trucker “convoy” protesting vaccination mandates in Canada in early 2022 received information from personnel in both local and federal law enforcement, according to their attorney. The Toronto Star reported that the attorney,
Truth or Fiction?→ U.S. President Joe Biden’s Speech on Threats to Democracy
On November 2 2022, United States President Joe Biden gave a speech ahead of the November 8 2022 U.S. midterm elections decrying a spike in political violence and urging voters to participate at the polls. Some Twitter users claimed that Biden’s