On January 20 2020 Facebook user Amber Miller shared a virally popular “laundry hack,” asserting that detergent cups are designed to be added to every wash, because “it cleans them”: Miller’s post racked up over 13,000 sh
Publication: TruthOrFiction
Truth or Fiction?→ Alabama Senate Blocks Attempts to Raise Minimum Wage in Birmingham
In Janaury 2020, a number of Facebook users shared an article headlined “Alabama senate blocks attempts to raise minimum wage in Birmingham,” a piece which spread against the backdrop of the 2020 presidential elections and a national discu
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘We Have Noticed the Condition of Your Vehicle’ Viral Human Resources Letter
On January 21 2020, the Facebook page “Inhumans of late capitalism” posted the following screenshot of a purported letter from a human resources department at an unidentified company that appeared to be haranguing an employee for the condi
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘How Canadians Are Dealing with an Unprecedented Blizzard’ Post
A January 20 2020 post on the Facebook page “Quick Turtle” (called “How Canadians Are Dealing With An Unprecedented Blizzard”) was shared almost 60,000 times in two days: In addition to the status update and title, nineteen
Truth or Fiction?→ White House Impeachment Counsel Lies About GOP House Disruption
During the impeachment trial of United States President Donald Trump on January 21 2020, White House Counsel Pat Cipollone flagrantly pushed disinformation concerning an October 2019 meeting that House Republicans “stormed” for attention.
Truth or Fiction?→ Deadline to Change Party Affiliation in New York State is February 14 2020 (Not October 2019)
In January 2020, a number of Twitter users claimed that New York residents had until February 14 2020 to either change their party affiliation or register to vote, information at odds with a widely repeated claim that the deadline to do so had passed
Truth or Fiction?→ Did One of Trump’s College Professors Call Him ‘the Dumbest Goddamn Student I Ever Had’?
An often-circulated quote from a University of Pennsylvania faculty member attacking United States President Donald Trump was posthumously spread second-hand. The purported remark attributed to Wharton School of Business professor William T. Kelley
Truth or Fiction?→ Harry S. Truman: ‘Socialism is a Scare Word’
In January 2020, a Facebook post from September 2019 featuring an image of President Harry S. Truman and claims in 1952 Truman said that “socialism is a scare word” continued to spread: At the top of the meme, text over an image of Trum
Truth or Fiction?→ Local News Station Conducts Voting Poll Listing Bernie Sanders as ‘Other’?
On January 20 2020, the Facebook page “Fully Automated Luxury Gay Space Communism” shared a screenshot of a tweet purporting to show a televised ABC7News Bay Area segment in which Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders appeared to receive a number of
Truth or Fiction?→ Is Disney Releasing a Sequel to Bette Midler’s ‘Hocus Pocus’?
A fan-made illustration that spread around Facebook in January 2020 may have stirred anticipation in fans of the 1993 horror comedy Hocus Pocus, but it’s unclear whether those hopes will be fulfilled anytime soon. The illustration (which was sh
Truth or Fiction?→ Super Nintendo World Mushroom Kingdom Urinals
On January 18 2020, the Facebook page “GeekDup Girl” shared the following screenshot. Its first portion of which purportedly involved a tweet from Nintendo of America showing “Mushroom Kingdom” urinals planned for a theme park
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Ruby Bridges is Only 65’ Meme
On January 17 2020, the Facebook page “The Other 98%” shared the following meme, which claimed that as of January 2020, Ruby Bridges (the iconic little girl who was the first black child at a previously all-white public school in Louisiana
Truth or Fiction?→ Trump ‘Break My Stride’ Tweets
On January 18 2020, Twitter users shared the following video that purportedly showed a screenshot of United States President Donald Trump’s recent tweets — which taken together, formed the lyrics to “Break My Stride,” a 1983 pop s
Truth or Fiction?→ Martin Luther King, Jr.: ‘Capitalism Does Not Permit an Even Flow of Economic Resources’
On January 17 2020, an Imgur post featured a screenshot of a tweet by @andrehenry quoting Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on Capitalism, asserting that such a system did not “permit an even flow of resources”: “Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. wa
Truth or Fiction?→ Martin Luther King Jr., Anne Frank, and Barbara Walters Are the Same Age?
In December 2019 (and periodically since), a Facebook post claimed that that Anne Frank, Martin Luther King Jr., and Barbara Walters would all be the same age if everyone was alive today: An additional status update stated the claim was the poster&
Truth or Fiction?→ Alan Dershowitz’s Watergate Trial Gripe About ‘Blacks and Liberals’ Resurfaces Online
A November 1974 remark from attorney Alan Dershowitz found new visibility in January 2020 after it was highlighted by the chief of staff for Virginia state Sen. Dave Marsden, not long after the Trump administration announced that Dershowitz would be j
Truth or Fiction?→ Did a Medical Journal List ‘The Notorious H.R.T.’ as a Nickname for Hormone Replacement Therapy?
An image that purports to show a screengrab from a medical journal was featured on a tweet that gained traction on January 15 2020. The tweet contains a capture of this citation: It says: Hormone replacement therapy has many nicknames among transfe
Truth or Fiction?→ Nancy Pelosi’s ‘Gold Pens’ Impeachment Controversy
On January 16 2020, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s gold pens on silver platters were the subject of a Facebook post shared by known disinformation peddler and sometimes grifter Brian Kolfage: Across a photograph of three trays of gold-ti
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Downy in Toilet’ Housekeeping Hack
On January 14 2020, a Facebook post appeared advising readers to pour a cup of laundry detergent of fabric softener like Downy into their toilet tank, a supposed housecleaning “hack”: Alongside a photograph of a person in yellow glove
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Prince Philip is Dead’; Rumor Spreads Like Wildfire
On January 17 2020, rumors Queen Elizabeth II’s husband Prince Philip had died began sweeping Twitter. Commonly, users reported hearing the rumor of Philip’s purported death at work or “on the street”: Work rumour is that P
Truth or Fiction?→ Were Senators Given Protester ‘Assistance’ Cards To Use Against Journalists?
On January 16 2020, as the impeachment trial of United States President Donald Trump was just beginning, a CBS reporter claimed on Twitter that his organization had obtained a flashcard “that was being given to U.S. Senators ahead of the #Impea
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘My Favorite Catholic Lore’ Holy Water Facts Meme
On January 15 2020, a Tumblr screenshot featuring purported facts about holy water (“my favorite Catholic lore”) was shared to Imgur with the title “How to get +1 holy damage”: A multi-party Tumblr exchange began with claims f
Truth or Fiction?→ Is the Equal Rights Amendment Now Law?
Instead of ending a decades-long political battle, the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) by Virginia lawmakers on January 15 2020 likely means the next step in an ongoing legal fight. The state House of Delegates and Senate voted to add
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Virginia Declare a State of Emergency Due to Armed Militias?
On January 15 2020, a number of articles and social media posts mentioned the declaration of a state of emergency in Virginia, purportedly because of armed militias: Virginia Declares State of Emergency After Armed Militias Threaten to Stor
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Bernie Sanders Tell Elizabeth Warren a Woman Couldn’t Win a Presidential Election?
On January 13 2020, CNN published an article with the headline, “Bernie Sanders told Elizabeth Warren in private 2018 meeting that a woman can’t win, sources say.” It began: The stakes were high when Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warr
Truth or Fiction?→ How a Banking Meme Ties Into a Debate Over Calendar Denominations
A long-running debate off and on social media somehow managed to loop a type of beer into a discussion around how to denote the historical timeline in January 2020: The meme, which has spread around Twitter and Facebook, shows a check made out to
Truth or Fiction?→ 2016 ‘Bern the Witch’ Sanders Campaign Event
On January 14 2020, Twitter user @TrinityMustache claimed that the 2016 Bernie Sanders campaign hosted a “Bern the Witch” event attacking then-Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton: Bernie Sanders had a “Bern the Witch”
Truth or Fiction?→ Does This Photograph Show Syrians Leaving Idlib?
In January 2020, the Syrian region of Idlib — the last rebel bastion in the country — teetered on the verge of further humanitarian disaster as its own government continued airstrikes against the population there. Meanwhile, the Russian government
Truth or Fiction?→ 500,000 Americans Will Go Bankrupt This Year from Medical Bills?
On January 12 2020, the Facebook page “Lower Drug Prices Now” shared what appeared to be a screenshot of a tweet, which claimed that “500,000 Americans will go bankrupt this year” due to medical bills: Claims referencing &#
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Woman Steals Trump Sign, Immediately Regrets It’ Video
On January 13 2020, Facebook user Ryan Fournier of Students for Trump (whose partner and co-founder was later charged with fraud for posing as an attorney) shared a video with the text: “Woman Steals Trump Sign. Immediately Regrets it”:
Truth or Fiction?→ Fake ‘Thailand’s Seven New Provinces’ Post Resurfaces on Social Media in Thailand
An online hoax dating back to at least 2015 about Thailand having seven new provinces continued to spread as recently as January 2020, according to news and fact-checking organization Agence France-Presse. The news service reported that a post pushin
Truth or Fiction?→ Did a Study Find U.S. Healthcare Costs More Than Four Times as Much as Canadian Single-Payer?
On January 8 2020, MSN.com aggregated a Los Angeles Times article, which reported that Americans pay four times as much per capita for health care than Canadians did under their country’s single-payer healthcare program: In the United States, a
Truth or Fiction?→ NikkieTutorials (Nikkie de Jager) Comes Out as Transgender
On January 13 2020, YouTube star Nikkie de Jager — known to her fans as NikkieTutorials — revealed in a 17-minute video that she is transgender: I’m coming out. https://t.co/chLHURZKk4 — NikkieTutorials (@NikkieTutorials) January 13, 2
Truth or Fiction?→ Donald Trump Says He ‘Saved Pre-Existing Conditions in Your Healthcare’
On January 13 2020, United States President Donald Trump tried to attack a Democratic Party presidential candidate for “false advertising” by repeating a lie of his own. In a tweet attacking former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg, Tr
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Vermont Socialist Plans Mayoralty with Bias Toward Poor’ Headline
As the Iowa caucuses edged closer in January 2020, Twitter account @CANCEL_SAM shared a screenshot of a purported 1981 New York Times article ostensibly about Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) bearing the headline, “Vermont Socialist Plans Mayor
Truth or Fiction?→ Online Debate Stirs Fears of a ‘Star Wars’ Disinformation Campaign
A round of rumors and criticism surrounding the new Star Wars movie series has ignited debate in what has become an ongoing discussion about disinformation pushed in pop culture fandom — but experts are split whether that label applies to a Reddi
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Blue Buffalo Dental Bones Hemorrhagic Gastritis’ Facebook Warning
On January 5 2020, Facebook user Nikki McDonald shared the following post about the brand Blue Buffalo’s Dental Bones product, reporting that her dog Dallas was gravely injured and nearly killed after she gave him the product: In under a week
Truth or Fiction?→ Were an Army Veteran’s Prosthetic Legs ‘Repossessed’ After a VA and Medicare Dispute?
On January 9 2020, an article about Army veteran Jerry Holliman and the repossession of his prosthetic legs after a payment dispute between the VA and Medicare was shared to Reddit’s r/nottheonion, a subreddit for news stories odd enough to soun
Truth or Fiction?→ Does Using Antidepressants Disqualify You from a Military Draft?
After a January 3 2020 United States-led strike killed Iranian Maj. Gen. Qassem Suleimani in Baghdad, Iraq, speculation flew about impending war, eventually turning into rumors about an American military draft. On the day Suleimani was killed, news o
Truth or Fiction?→ Australian Prime Minister’s Bushfire Aid Ad Criticized Amid Flood of Disinformation
Amid the devastation suffered in Australia as a result of rampant bushfires and right-wing disinformation efforts, Prime Minister Scott Morrison faced a wave of criticism for an advertisement that both elided government regulations and circumvented ac