On September 5 2022, a popular post to Reddit’s r/WhitePeopleTwitter purportedly depicted a fundraising email connected to former United States President Donald Trump: Imagine the type of people who actually subscribe to Trump’s
Publication: TruthOrFiction
Truth or Fiction?→ Biden’s ‘Red Speech’
In early September 2022, images from a speech given by United States President Joe Biden quickly nicknamed the “red speech” — so called because it appeared to be against the backdrop of menacing red lights — began circulating on
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Alabama Town Disbands Police Force After Racist Text Message Surfaces’
On August 31 2022, an Imgur account shared a screenshot of what appeared to be a news report that an Alabama police force had been entirely disbanded “after a racist text message” came to light: A source for the Imgur post wasn’t imm
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘TIL That the Civil Rights Act Was Not the First One in the U.S., But Rather the Second One….’
On August 31 2022, a Reddit account shared a post to r/todayilearned which made the assertion that the Civil Rights Act was not a novel effort — and that similar, preceding legislation was overturned by the Supreme Court in 1883: TIL
Truth or Fiction?→ Jackson, Mississippi ‘Indefinitely’ Out of Water
On August 30 2022, a post to Reddit’s r/news claimed that the city of Jackson, Mississippi was without water for an unknown period of time: Jackson, Mississippi, water system is failing, city to be with no or little drinking water inde
Truth or Fiction?→ Former U.S. President Boosts QAnon, 4Chan Disinformation via Truth Social App
On August 29 and 30 2022, former United States President Donald Trump turned to his app Truth Social to share dozens of disinformation-heavy posts — content that was largely not visible to users not registered with the app, but which prompted s
Truth or Fiction?→ Do Americans Have to Apply for Student Loan Forgiveness?
In the days after the Biden administration unveiled its long-anticipated student loan forgiveness plan in August 2022, discussions on (and off) social media platforms focused on details and aspects of the initiative — including whether eligible b
Truth or Fiction?→ Yes, Borrowers Are Eligible for Refunds on Student Loan Payments Made After March 2020
After the Biden administration announced a student loan forgiveness plan in late August 2022, broad-ranging discussions included claims that some borrowers might be eligible for refunds of payments made during a “pause” initiated in March 2
Truth or Fiction?→ GOP Candidates Scrub Anti-Abortion Positions From Campaign Sites After Kansas Referendum
On August 28 2022, screenshots of tweets claiming that Republican candidates were hastily, and quietly, amending their positions on abortion from vocally supportive of widespread restrictions to a more nebulous stance: Huh. Is forced birth unpopular
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘No On Oz’
After being ridiculed by a political opponent, television personality turned right-wing candidate Mehmet Oz was the butt of a joke yet again, this time thanks to a well-placed photo alteration. On August 12 2022, Oz posted two photographs of himself at
Truth or Fiction?→ Rep. Jim Banks Tweet: ‘Student Loan Forgiveness Undermines’ Military Recruiting
Amid national student loan forgiveness discourse on August 25 2022, screenshots of a tweet attributed to an Indiana Republican appeared and went viral, expressing his apparent belief that U.S. President Joe Biden’s plan potentially undermined mil
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘This Unbelievable Photo Is of the RMS Queen Elizabeth Ship Pulling Into New York Harbor in 1945 … ‘
On August 20 2022, the Facebook page “USA Military Families” shared a striking image, purportedly a photograph of American troops heading to New York at the end of World War II in 1945; the image was shared to Imgur three days later: An I
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Doug Mastriano, Jenna Ellis, and Breitbart Touted a Fake Polling Firm Created by a High School Student’
On August 25 2022, a popular screenshot of a tweet on Imgur claimed that right-wing entities fell for and promoted a “poll” on Twitter — without checking to determine whether it was credible: Amazing but not surprising: Doug Mastr
Truth or Fiction?→ House Report: Trump Advisor Plotted With ‘Known Extremists’ to Promote Bogus COVID-19 Drug
A discredited advisor to former United States President Donald Trump “exerted inappropriate pressure” on federal officials to promote a similarly discredited treatment for COVID-19, a House committee said in a report released on August 24 2
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Book Banned at School Named After its Author’
On August 23 2022, an Imgur account shared an image claiming that a school in Texas had banned a book authored by George Dawson — the same person for whom the school was named: Everything’s bigger in Texas. Including stupidity On the same da
Truth or Fiction?→ Crowder and Shapiro Student Loan Forgiveness-PPP Controversy
As social media anticipated an August 23 2022 announcement on student loan forgiveness from the Biden administration, right-wing Twitter pundits like Steven Crowder and Ben Shapiro criticized the move. The next day, multiple news outlets reported that
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Louisiana Withholding Flood Funding from New Orleans’ in Abortion Disagreement
On August 22 2022, an Imgur account shared a screenshot of the following tweet, which claimed that the state of Louisiana was withholding flood funding from New Orleans in an abortion-related disagreement — just as the anniversary of 2005’
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘TIL Astronaut Jack Schmidt Discovered He Was Allergic to Moon Dust, Which Is a Thing….’
On August 23 2022, a Reddit account shared a screenshot to r/tumblr which suggested that astronaut Jack Schmidt discovered he was allergic to moon dust during a lunar expedition in 1972: Moon’s an allergen from tumblr A
Truth or Fiction?→ Twitter Wrongfully Flags Stories on COVID-19 Research as ‘Misleading’
Social platform Twitter has started to flag articles about COVID-19 as “potentially misleading,” despite the articles being based on actual research and legitimate reporting, with no explanation. One such article, posted by the Internation
Truth or Fiction?→ Kansas Abortion Recount Affirms Will of the Voters
On August 22 2022, a post to Reddit’s r/politics (and r/all) said that a Kansas abortion referendum recount reaffirmed the initial tally — indicating that voters in Kansas continue to overwhelmingly favor legal access to abortion in the sta
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Pulling Yourself Up by Your Bootstraps’ Origin
On August 19 2022, a Facebook page shared a screenshot of a tweet claiming that the origin of the popular American English phrase “pulling yourself up by your bootstraps” was the exact opposite of its modern usage: In the screenshot, the f
Truth or Fiction?→ Did France’s Loire River ‘Run Dry’ in August 2022?
On August 14 2022, a Facebook account shared a photograph and a status update about France’s Loire River, which had purportedly “run dry” or “dried out” amid intense heat waves and drought conditions in the summer of 2022
Truth or Fiction?→ Nixon Blasts ‘False Charges’
On August 19 2022, an Imgur account shared what appeared to be an August 1973 New York Daily News front page, and a headline stating “Nixon Blasts ‘False Charges'”: The submission, which was titled “The past isn’t over,
Truth or Fiction?→ Former CIA Director Gen. Michael Hayden’s ‘I Agree’ Tweet
On August 17 2022, an Imgur account shared a screenshot of a concise tweet attributed to a former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) director, Gen. Michael Hayden: In the screenshot shared to Imgur, Gen. Hayden appeared to retweet an observation by Fin
Truth or Fiction?→ The Origin of the ‘Spitting Stalin’ Statue
A statue of “spitting Stalin” that is periodically viral online is real — but its location is unclear. Photographs of a statue of the former Soviet Union leader Joseph Stalin, usually seen half-submerged, have circulated online for ye
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘I’m Very Worried for Our Agent Trump’: Host on Russian State Media
On August 17 2022, a post to Reddit’s r/worldnews suggested that a broadcaster on Russian state media had said “I’m very worried about our agent Trump,” during a segment mentioning the August 2022 Federal Bureau of Investigatio
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘West Virginia Governor Denies Request’ for Abortion Vote ‘After Seeing What Happened in Kansas’
On August 16 2022, a screenshot shared to r/WhitePeopleTwitter suggested that the Republican governor of West Virginia, Jim Justice, denied a request for a popular vote on abortion rights after witnessing the outcome of the abortion referendum in Kansa
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Hey, Donald Trump, I Wanna Know Why … ‘ Song
On August 15 2022, an Imgur account shared a video from Twitter of a large crowd singing a catchy song with lyrics that began, “Hey, Donald Trump, I wanna know …” (to the tune of “Hey, Baby”): The “Trump Song”, l
Truth or Fiction?→ Marjorie Taylor Greene on Renewable Energy: ‘I Don’t Want to Have to Go to Bed When the Sun Sets’
On August 14 2022, an Imgur account and Facebook page shared the same Twitter screenshot, which appeared to imply that Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Georgia) had objected to renewable energy, such as solar, because she didn’t want to “go t
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘You Don’t Sound American’
A 2018 interview showing two local television news presenters ambushing an Iranian-American activist — and then getting rebuffed — received renewed attention in August 2022. Another activist, Dr. Arash Daneshzadeh, posted (and later deleted
Truth or Fiction?→ The Onion ‘Oracle’: Mar-a-Lago ‘Nuclear Briefcase from Lost And Found’
On August 12 2022, an Imgur account shared a screenshot from Twitter, purportedly featuring a prophetic article from The Onion in 2017, describing nuclear material improperly stored at Mar-a-Lago: little known fact: the onion is staffed by wizards
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘If You See Me, Cry’: Hunger Stones in Some Czech And German Rivers
In the midst of heat waves in Europe and the United States in August 2022, a Twitter account tweeted about the emergence of “hunger stones” in Europe — carvings warning future people of poor agricultural conditions to come: The r
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘The Rise of Lonely, Single Men’ as ‘Healthy Relationship Standards Increase’
On August 11 2022, a post from the Facebook page “Feminist News” featured a purported screenshot from a Psychology Today article, blaming an increase in “healthy relationship standards” for a “rise in lonely, single men
Truth or Fiction?→ House Report Shows How ‘Herd Immunity’ Disinformation Influenced Trump’s COVID Response
As the United States deals with both the continued spread of COVID-19 and a rise in monkeypox cases around the country, a House subcommittee report showed how “herd immunity” disinformation gained traction during Donald Trump’s presid
Truth or Fiction?→ Trump ‘The Mob Takes the Fifth Amendment’ Quote
On August 10 2022, an Imgur account shared two images — one news screenshot suggesting that former United States President Donald Trump had invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, and the following quote meme indicating that
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Anyone Being Investigated by the FBI Is Not Qualified to Be President of the United States’ Trump Quote Is Likely Misattributed
After former United States President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago was raided by the FBI on August 8 2022, an extremely widespread set of memes claimed Trump repeatedly said “anyone being investigated by the FBI” was unfit to hold the off
Truth or Fiction?→ CPAC ‘We Are All Domestic Terrorists’ Digital Banner
In early August 2022, memes and tweets highlighted a purported banner displayed at the Conservative Political Action Conference, reading “We Are All Domestic Terrorists”: Maga has "Civil War" trending. I guess that cpac bann
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘1994, CEOs of Seven Major Tobacco Corporations in the United States Swear That Nicotine is Not Addictive’
On August 8 2022, an image purportedly showing seven chief executive officers of tobacco companies at a 1994 hearing was shared to Reddit’s r/agedlikemilk (a subreddit for anything that has deteriorated with age instead of improving over time):
Truth or Fiction?→ Benny Johnson’s ‘Trump’s Enthusiasm is Bigger Than in 2016’ Deleted Tweet
On August 6 2022, Twitter user Ron Filipkowski tweeted a screenshot of a tweet that was purportedly posted, and then quietly deleted by right-wing blogger Benny Johnson, in which Johnson shared an image that he claimed was from a rally for former Unite
Truth or Fiction?→ House Report Accuses Corporate Landlords of ‘Abusive Eviction Practices’ Despite CDC Moratorium
Four property management companies accounted for nearly 15,000 eviction filings in the United States as the COVID-19 pandemic raged on, according to a House investigation — nearly triple the amount that had previously been reported. Their practic