On October 11 2022, footage from TikTok was shared to Imgur with a descriptive on-screen top caption — “Starbucks corporate is leaving mobile orders on when workers are on strike”: Starbucks Corporate latest union busting tactics;
Publication: viral content
Truth or Fiction?→ I-80 Wyoming, ‘Highway to Heaven’
A September 30 2022 Facebook image of a “highway to heaven” in Wyoming spread virally in late September and early October 2022; the attached image looked like this: No links to additional information or a source for the image appeared alo
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Florida Female Student Athletes Have to Report Their Menstrual History to Play’
On October 3 2022, social media discourse followed claims that Florida’s female student athletes were made to disclose their “menstrual history” in order to participate in athletics: Florida female student athletes are aske
Truth or Fiction?→ Study: ‘Registered Republicans Had Far Higher Excess Death Rates Than Registered Democrats’ in Ohio and Florida
On October 3 2022, journalist James Surowiecki tweeted about a “new study” of post-vaccine pandemic mortality, contrasting deaths in Florida and Ohio with voter registrations: New study of almost 600,000 deaths in Ohio and Florida shows t
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Iranian Women in the 60s’
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
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?→ 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?→ ‘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?→ 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?→ 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?→ 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
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?→ 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?→ ‘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?→ ‘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?→ ‘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?→ 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?→ ‘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