On October 2 2022, the Facebook page “Feminist News” shared a photograph labeled “Iranian women in the 60s”: No context or source for the image was provided, and it was more accurate to say that it pictured an individual woman
Publication: TruthOrFiction
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Dennis Prager Wrote a Whole Essay Whining About Men Having to Respect Women’s Sexual Boundaries’
On September 30 2022, a Twitter account shared a screenshot of a purported “essay” by PragerU founder Dennis Prager, featuring — in the tweet’s words — “whining about men having to respect women’s sexual boundaries
Truth or Fiction?→ Russian Consulate in New York City Vandalized?
On September 30 2022, a post to Reddit’s r/ukraine purportedly showed photographs of the New York City Russian consulate after it was vandalized and splattered with red paint: Russian consulate in New York City this morning from u
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Former Turning Point USA Youth Events Coordinator Adam Hageman Sentenced to 66 Months …’
On September 28 2022, an Imgur screenshot of a contemporaneous tweet claimed that a youth coordinator for right-wing campus activist group Turning Point USA, Adam Hageman, was sentenced to 66 months in prison in connection with a “child pornograp
Truth or Fiction?→ Publix Hurricane Cake (Ian Edition)
As Hurricane Ian approached Florida, images of “hurricane cakes” purportedly being sold at Publix began circulating on social media platforms: #HurricaneIan I think we're being warned pic.twitter.com/XLk9by8xTL — Inappropriate
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Most Intense Weather Broadcast Ever’
As Hurricane Ian bore down on Florida in September 2022, old clips of Shepard Smith’s blunt warnings to Floridians about a different storm gained new life online. “So the weatherman just gonna OD on us like that?” read one tweet showi
Truth or Fiction?→ Elected Officials Spread Questionable Claims of ‘Rainbow Fentanyl’
Claims of “rainbow fentanyl” are ushering in the 2022 Halloween season, but the most frightening aspect of the rumors might be how willing lawmakers are to believe them. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) has taken up the tal
Truth or Fiction?→ Rep. Liz Cheney ‘Message to Trump’ Tweet
On September 26 2022, an Imgur account shared a screenshot of a tweet attributed to Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyoming): Lol Alongside the post, the Imgur submitter included a link to a September 26 2022 set of tweets. Elements like links to tweets are often
Truth or Fiction?→ Fake AOC ‘Electric Cars’ Tweet Resurfaced in Hurricane Ian Discourse
On September 26 2022, as Hurricane Ian entered the news cycle, screenshots of a tweet attributed to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York) about gas station lines and electric cars circulated — again: pic.twitter.com/JzsnKOcPWF — MAGA
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Defund the Police’ Digitally Altered Attack Ad
On September 25 2022, a screenshot of a popular tweet apparently showed a dishonest attack advertisement against Rep. Ricky Hurtado (D- North Carolina): Look at this – it’s a comically dishonest political attack in NC. Rep. Ricky Hurtado ha
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Hillary Clinton Praise Italy’s New Fascist Leader?
Remarks from political figure and former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton published in Italy in September 2022 received attention and criticism from Americans, thanks to a tweet parsing out two remarks regarding Italy’s incoming far right
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Kyrsten Sinema Introducing Donald Trump’ Video
On September 26 2022, Twitter user Paul Lahticks (@PaulLahticks) shared a purported video showing Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Arizona) with former U.S. President Donald Trump: BREAKING: After teaming up with Mitch McConnell today in Louisville to give a s
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Microbiological Culture of an Eight Year Old’s Handprint After Playing Outside’
On September 14 2022, a Facebook account shared an image labeled “Microbiological culture of an 8-Year old’s handprint after playing outside” to the public group “Weird, Fantastic and Odd Things”: Against a black backdro
Truth or Fiction?→ Trump ‘Peekaboo’ Truth Social Post
On September 21 2022, screenshots of a Truth Social post referencing New York state attorney general Letitia “Peekaboo” James and attributed to former United States President Donald Trump began circulating; it was quickly shared to Reddit&#
Truth or Fiction?→ Russia ‘Traffic Jam at the Finnish Border’ Video
On September 21 2022, “Russia traffic jam” became a trending topic on Twitter, largely due to the virality of a tweet purportedly showing massive gridlock at the border shared by Russia and Finland: #Breaking: just in – The traffic
Truth or Fiction?→ California Attorney General Seizes Control of Los Angeles Sheriff’s Investigation of Local Officials
California Attorney General Rob Bonta has taken control of an investigation originally carried out by Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva, which quickly stirred accusations that the sheriff was attempting to intimidate local officials with overs
Truth or Fiction?→ Florida Gov. DeSantis Sued for ‘Fraudulent and Illegal Scheme’ Against Immigrants
Attorneys representing a group of immigrants filed a class-action lawsuit against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) on September 20 2022, accusing him of organizing their wrongful transport from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard. The group Lawyers for Civil
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘NyQuil Chicken Challenge,’ Explained
On September 20 2022, Twitter’s “trending topics” prominently featured “NyQuil chicken” (purportedly due to a dangerous TikTok trend or “challenge,”) and clicking on the topic directed people to a large warning
Truth or Fiction?→ Georgia ‘Fake Elector’ Had More Access to Voting Equipment Than Previously Reported
On September 20 2022, discussions about a “fake elector” in Georgia appeared on several of Reddit’s subreddits: These fake electors should be in prison by now. from WhitePeopleTwitter A post shared to r/WhiteP
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Judy Garland Raise Money for the Civil Rights Movement?
Actor Judy Garland’s activism drew renewed attention decades after the fact after her work was highlighted by journalist Bobby Rivers. Rivers posted a photograph of Garland and fellow stars, saying: On This Day In History: Judy Garland — wi
Truth or Fiction?→ Puerto Rico Bridge Washed Away During Hurricane Fiona
A day after Hurricane Fiona made landfall on Puerto Rico on September 18 2022, several video clips of storm floods washing a bridge away were shared on Reddit. A post to r/AbruptChaos showed the sudden collapse of a bridge in hurricane floodwaters:
Truth or Fiction?→ The COVID-19 Pandemic Is Not ‘Over’
On September 18 2022, during a 60 Minutes segment, United States President Joe Biden’s remarks included a claim that the COVID-19 pandemic was “over” — leading to quite a lot of pushback: In an interview on “60 Minutes&#
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Shameful and Inhuman’: Federal Agents Accused of Planting Fake Addresses on Immigrants
As criticism and attention piled onto right-wing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) for shipping a group of fifty asylum seekers from Texas to Massachusetts, an immigration attorney accused federal operatives of lying to the immigrants as part of that proce
Truth or Fiction?→ South Carolina Republicans ‘Voted to Remove Exceptions for Rape and Incest from Their Proposed Abortion Ban’
On September 15 2022, an Imgur account shared a screenshot of a tweet attributed to Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Washington), which claimed that members of the South Carolina GOP had removed exceptions for rape and incest from their proposed abortion ban:
Truth or Fiction?→ Oklahoma Semitruck Accident Spills Adult Toys
On September 14 2022, a popular post to Reddit’s r/funny suggested that a tractor-trailer had “spilled a load of dildos and lube” in Oklahoma City: Semi Spilled a Load of Dildos and Lube in Oklahoma City from funny
Truth or Fiction?→ Meteor Observed Over Scotland, Northern Ireland
A September 14 2022 tweet from the account @latestinspace purportedly showed the trajectory of a low-flying “large meteor” observed that night in Scotland and Northern Ireland: BREAKING : Large meteor spotted burning up over Scotland and
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘The Queue’ in London
“The queue” trended on Twitter on September 14 2022, mostly due to a viral thread later reposted in screenshots to Facebook and Imgur. It started when Twitter user @curiousiguana initiated a thread about “The Queue,” describing
Truth or Fiction?→ Texas Delaying Maternal Death Data Until After Midterms?
On September 14 2022, social media posts claimed that the state of Texas had delayed maternal mortality data until after the November 2022 midterm elections: Texas found out abortion bans are unpopular so they’re hiding their maternal death data u
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Hospitals Are Cancelling Appointments for Cancer Patients on the Day of the Queen’s Funeral’
On September 13 2022, a screenshot of a tweet claiming that hospitals across the UK canceled treatments for cancer patients on the day of Queen Elizabeth’s memorial servces “as a ‘mark of respect'” was highly popular across pla
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Late Term Abortion’ Legislation
On September 13 2022, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) announced a press conference regarding a proposed federal “late term abortions” ban, which was called the “Protecting Pain-Capable Unborn Children from Late-Term Abortions
Truth or Fiction?→ Michigan Woman Blames Internet Conspiracy Theories for Father’s Fatal Shooting Rampage
A Michigan woman whose father committed a fatal shooting attack against their family on September 11 2022 identified the “QAnon” conspiracy theory and several strands of online disinformation for the mental degeneration that preceded his ac
Truth or Fiction?→ Arrests of Anti-Monarchy Protesters
On September 11 and 12 2022, popular tweets claimed that individuals protesting the monarchy at ongoing public events in the UK were (in some cases) being cautioned, detained, or arrested: The police were far more eager to arrest a woman with an ab
Truth or Fiction?→ Michael Sheen Speech on Wales Sees New Light After Monarch’s Death
In the aftermath of the death of Queen Elizabeth II on September 8 2022, past comments by actor Michael Sheen on the effects of English dominion over his native Wales once again gained traction online. For the second time in two years, social media inf
Truth or Fiction?→ Trump ‘Knighted in Secret’
On September 10 2022, two days after Queen Elizabeth II’s death, an enormously popular social media rumor suggested that former United States President Donald Trump said that she had secretly knighted him; one very popular tweet attributed the
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Queen Elizabeth Had Two Severely Disabled First Cousins Who Were Publicly Pronounced Dead In 1940 and 1961 Respectively …’
Queen Elizabeth II’s death on September 8 2022 led to significant discussions both off and on social media about her reign, including a viral tweet about her “two severely disabled first cousins,” and the purportedly callous way that
Truth or Fiction?→ Irish Dancers at Buckingham Palace (to the Tune Of ‘Another One Bites the Dust’)
Queen Elizabeth II’s death on September 8 2022 led to significant social media discussions about history, colonization, monarchy, and the future; in the middle of that milieu, a clip of Irish dancers performing to Queen’s “Another One
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Irish Unification Of 2024’
The death of Queen Elizabeth II on September 8 2022 led to extensive commentary, discourse, and memes — the latter including a Star Trek: The Next Generation still referencing the “Irish Unification of 2024”: RIP Lizzie, you would h
Truth or Fiction?→ NYC Snow Days ‘Cancelled’
In September 2022, several social media posts alluded to the end of “snow days” in New York City’s schools, many of which lamented the end of giving staff and students the day off because of inclement weather: Snowed out: N
Truth or Fiction?→ North Carolina School Baptisms
On September 6 2022, an Imgur account shared a screenshot of a two-day-old tweet which claimed that a school in North Carolina baptized a hundred children without parental consent: A North Carolina School Baptizes 100 Kids Without Parents’ Permissi
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘There Were Zero Unionized Starbucks Stores at This Time [in 2021], Now There Are Over 200. Happy Labor Day.’
On September 5 2022 — Labor Day — a Facebook account shared the following status update against a colorful background: There were zero unionized Starbucks stores at this time last year [2021]. Now there are over 200. Happy labor day. Fac