On June 3 2022, a post that was described as written by an “Uvalde mom” was “popular now” in Facebook search — relating to a circulating status update attributed to the mother of a child killed in the Uvalde, Texas school
Publication: TruthOrFiction
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Saturn as Captured from a Backyard Telescope’
On May 28 2022, a Facebook user shared an image captioned, “Saturn as seen from a backyard telescope” to the large public group “Physics and Astronomy.” Commenters on the post seemed to believe the sharer captured the image pers
Truth or Fiction?→ Leonna Hale Photoshop Controversy
On May 30 2022, social media users discussed the shooting of Leonna Hale, a purportedly unarmed pregnant woman in Kansas City — frequently in the context of police actions during and after the May 24 2022 Uvalde, Texas school shooting: Kansas C
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘US Median Rent to Reach $2000’ in 2022
Amid an ongoing national discourse around average wages and a skyrocketing cost of living, a popular May 31 2022 tweet claiming that the median rent in the United States reached $2000 also spread in threads on Reddit and Imgur as part of a broader disc
Truth or Fiction?→ Universal Federal Free Lunch Program Ending
On May 31 2022, a popular Imgur post indicated federal free lunches in schools was slated to end the next month: As someone who’s family struggled financially growing up, they should just make school lunches free forever! That image-based post
Truth or Fiction?→ Tikrit Shoe Statue
On May 30 2022, a Reddit user shared a photograph which purportedly showed a “shoe monument” in Tikrit, Iraq, commemorating an incident during which an Iraqi journalist threw his shoes at former U.S. President George W. Bush during a press
Truth or Fiction?→ Leading Cause of Death in Children Since 2020
On May 25 2022, ongoing discussions and discourse about the devastating Uvalde, Texas school shooting included a circulating statistic — that as of 2020, the leading cause of death in children was gun related: The leading cause of death among
Truth or Fiction?→ The Onion, the New York Times, and Mass Shootings
The morning after a May 24 2022 mass shooter killed multiple children and teachers in Uvalde, Texas, The Onion edited their notable and cyclical “No Way to Prevent This …” article and front page; at the same time, an account spotting
Truth or Fiction?→ TikTok and Pastor Greg Locke IRS Controversy
On May 24 2022, a number of Imgur posts showed screenshots of a Twitter discussion about a purported “TikTok trend” involving television pastor Greg Locke, the Internal Revenue Service, and mass reporting churches engaging in political ac
Truth or Fiction?→ Marjorie Taylor Greene: ‘White Supremacy Should Not Be the Main Target … We Should Not Be Pursuing People Based on How They Vote’
As the nation continued to discover and discuss “replacement theory” in late May 2022, a Twitter screenshot on Imgur attributed a quote to Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Georgia), addressing white supremacy by saying that the government
Truth or Fiction?→ Walmart Juneteenth Ice Cream, Trademark Controversy
In late May 2022, rumors began swirling of a flavor of ice cream available at Walmart called “Juneteenth” — setting off miscellaneous threads of discussion about whether it was real, whether Walmart had trademarked the term, and if th
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Keanu Reeves Work As a Reporter Covering a Teddy Bear Convention?
A glimpse of actor Keanu Reeve’s first media jobs spread online once again in May 2022, thanks to a movie podcast. The show, “All The Right Movies,” posted a clip of Reeves’ work as a correspondent for the CBC Television program
Truth or Fiction?→ ’10 Weeks of Wheat’ in Global Reserves?
On May 22 2022, popular posts to r/worldnews and elsewhere carried an alarming claim that only ten weeks of wheat remained in global supply reserves — mostly, but not entirely, because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine: World has
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Woke’ Marvel, Jane Foster, and ‘Thor Losers’
In an example of using memes to fight pop culture disinformation, a graphic circulating on the platform Imgur refutes the misconception that Natalie Portman’s appearance in an upcoming Marvel Studios movie is a modern concession to “woke
Truth or Fiction?→ When Was Commercial Baby Formula ‘Invented’?
Amid a May 2022 baby formula shortage, dangerous discussions began about homemade formula — along with myriad social media posts asserting that Baby Boomers’ parents didn’t have access to formula, and they “turned out just fine
Truth or Fiction?→ Texas Governor Tweets, Quietly Deletes ‘@ElonMusk Picked the Right State to Move to’
On May 20 2022, journalist Kara Carlson tweeted an apparent screenshot of a deleted tweet from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R), in which Abbott retweeted Musk and addressed Musk’s relocation to Texas: now deleted: pic.twitter.com/QYtGbZhpp1 —
Truth or Fiction?→ Head of Shuttered DHS Disinfo Agency Says She Got Death Threats Amid Right-Wing Campaign
Besides being targeted by a right-wing disinformation campaign, the official who would have headed up a federal initiative fighting that sort of rhetoric said she received daily death threats. “Over the last three weeks, I maybe had one or two da
Truth or Fiction?→ Denmark Versus Netherlands Football Match, Both Teams Wear Ukraine Jerseys
On May 18 2022, an Imgur user shared a post that purportedly depicted a football match between teams from Denmark and the Netherlands — with both sides in “Ukraine” jerseys. The post was titled “Denmark plays with Netherlands
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘192 Republicans Voted Against’ Baby Formula Shortage Funding?
On May 18 and 19 2022, a number of posts on Imgur and Twitter asserted that “192 Republicans” voted against funding to address an ongoing baby formula shortage: Why did 192 Republicans vote against a $28 million emergency fund to address
Truth or Fiction?→ #CancelFoxNews: Cable Customers Demand Credit for ‘Core Channel’
On May 18 2022, Imgur user SchenectadySlumlord shared a Twitter screenshot about Fox News and cable companies. An attached December 2021 screenshot showed a tweet by user Paul Cogan. Cogan asserted that Fox News was part of his cable package, so he &
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Republicans Block a Gas Price Gouging Bill?
On May 18 2022, a screenshot of a headline, “Republicans block bill to stop price gouging at the pump as gas hits new record high,” dated the day before, was popular on Imgur: We found a link to the article on Reddit’s r/democrats on
Truth or Fiction?→ Haven, Kansas ‘In God We Trust’ Police Vehicle Controversy
On May 3 2022, Kansas.com reported that officials in Haven, Kansas came to a decision about having controversial references to religion on police vehicles: The Haven City Council voted Monday [May 2 2022] to remove the “In God We Trust” decals fro
Truth or Fiction?→ Candace Owens’ Ivermectin Fox News Tweet
On May 16 2022, Twitter user @BagdMilkSoWhat shared a purported screenshot of a tweet by right-wing pundit and disinformation purveyor Candace Owens, retweeting a Fox News tweet about parasite medication ivermectin causing incontinence: Oops #ShitCan
Truth or Fiction?→ Lauren Boebert ‘Severe Thunderstorm Watch’ Tweet
On May 16 2022, a screenshot of a purported tweet attributed to Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colorado) circulated, pinning the blame for a “severe thunderstorm watch” in New York to the policies of United States President Joe Biden: @laurenboeb
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Viking Was a Job … Not a Race or Ethnicity’
In May 2022, screenshots of a tweet about Netflix, Vikings, and white supremacy circulated on Facebook. In tweet seen in the screenshot, user @YasmineJibril retweeted another user’s commentary about Netflix’s purported casting of a woman of
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘NASA’ Warns Asteroid Headed Toward Earth?
On May 13 2022, an item from a site called American Military News (“NASA warns asteroid larger than Empire State Building headed towards Earth this weekend”) appeared on Trendolizer, indicating significant social media traction: NASA war
Truth or Fiction?→ Becky Lynn Paige ‘Parents Divorce Due to Medical Debt’ Tweet
On May 12 2022, an Imgur account shared a purported screenshot of a tweet by a woman who said that her parents had divorced after 52 years — so that her mother would not inherit her father’s medical debt after his death: On a patterned ba
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Yoga Barbie’ Satanic Panic Facebook Post
On May 3 2022, a Facebook user warned that “yoga Barbie” poses a spiritual threat to innocent children: “Yoga Barbie” is at Target on the shelf. Satan always comes as appearing innocent. He will never come with horns and a pitch
Truth or Fiction?→ A ‘Homemade Baby Formula’ Recipe from 1960 is Viral — and Dangerous
An April 26 2022 Facebook post featuring an emergency “homemade baby formula” recipe spread virally on platforms as a baby formula shortage worsened — and as experts pleaded with parents not to experiment with diluted or homemade form
Truth or Fiction?→ The Formula Shortage, Explained
In May 2022, news and discussion about a formula shortage in the United States ticked upward — but the severity of the issue and its implications were rarely clear in broad reporting. Complicating matters were the narrow and uneven — but no
Truth or Fiction?→ Congressional UFO Hearing Slated for May 17 2022
On May 10 2022, lawmakers on Twitter disclosed that an open hearing on unidentified aerial phenomena (or UAPs, formerly known as UFOs, or unidentified flying objects) would be held the following week in Congress. California congressmember Adam Schiff (
Truth or Fiction?→ … ‘In the 90s, the [Supreme] Court Held That Protesting Outside of the Homes of Abortion Clinic Employees Is Protected by the First Amendment’
On May 9 2022, discourse about the SCOTUS/Roe v. Wade leak turned to ongoing protests outside the homes of Supreme Court justices — and a very popular tweet suggested that in the 1990s, that same court ruled that protests outside the homes of abo
Truth or Fiction?→ Wisconsin ‘Child Labor Laws’ Meme
On May 8 2022, the Twitter account @YourAnonNews (and an Imgur account) shared a meme about Wisconsin child labor law changes to combat a “labor shortage”: pic.twitter.com/YSRz865fm3 — Anonymous (@YourAnonNews) May 8, 2022 On M
Truth or Fiction?→ Russian Ambassador to Poland Covered in Red Paint?
On May 9 2022, three Imgur posts purportedly showed Russia’s ambassador to Poland after an incident in Warsaw in which protesters threw red paint at him: One of the three posts linked to a tweet featuring video of the purported protest in Warsa
Truth or Fiction?→ Louisiana IUD Bill
On May 6 2022, a Twitter screenshot posted to Imgur suggested that Louisiana planned to vote to criminalize IUDs. No link was provided, but the screenshot of a tweet by Pam Keith was originally shared on May 5 2022: Louisiana is voting on a bill to
Truth or Fiction?→ Was the Original Roe v. Wade Decision Leaked?
On May 5 2022, popular posts claimed that the “original Roe v. Wade decision was leaked, too,” addressing assertions that the May 2022 leak of a Supreme Court draft decision to overturn Roe v. Wade was “unprecedented”: Fact-ch
Truth or Fiction?→ What Percent of Americans Believe Abortion Should Be Illegal?
On May 4 2022, a Reddit user shared a chart to r/dataisbeautiful amid ongoing, extremely fraught discourse about a leaked Supreme Court decision that aims to overturn Roe v. Wade: [OC] The Percent of Americans Who Believe Abortion Should Be
Truth or Fiction?→ Trump’s Bogus DHS Chief Changed Intel on Russia that ‘Hurt’ him: Report
The wrongfully-installed “acting” head of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ordered changes in 2020 to a report on Russian interference saying it would hurt then-United States President Donald Trump, according to a report from the d
Truth or Fiction?→ Russian State Media Claimed Ukraine Showed Signs of ‘Black Magic’ Use
On May 4 2022, Ukrainian journalist Anastasiia Lapatina tweeted about Russian state media purportedly accusing the Ukrainian military of engaging in “black magic”: Russian state media: “Signs of black magic were found in Ukrainian milit
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Domestic Supply of Infants’
On May 4 2022, an Imgur user shared a post titled “Domestic Supply of Infants,” which contained a screengrab of a footnote to a recently leaked Supreme Court draft decision to overturn Roe v. Wade: The blurry image of the footnote [46] rea