The story has been reported by multiple outlets but the details seem to vary with each telling.
FactCheck.org→ Charlie Kirk Misleads on White House Vaccine Policy
SciCheck Digest Federal employees — including at the White House — must attest to being vaccinated against COVID-19, or else comply with routine testing and mitigation measures. But conservative commentator Charlie Kirk claims that the R
Snopes→ Did Martin Luther Write of the Plague, ‘I Shall Not Avoid Person or Place’?
The 16th century Reformation leader also condemned those who "distain the use of medicines" and "do not avoid places and persons infected by the plague."
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Trump Did NOT Say ‘Do Not Be Distracted By All This Going On In Afghanistan’
Did former President Donald Trump say to not be distracted by Afghanistan because "a magician always distracts his audience ... And we all know that the Democrats are very good magicians"? No, that's not true: Liz Harrington, Trump's spok
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: There Is NO Mandatory Oil Dump Order In Place From The ‘Department of Hydrocarbons’ — It’s A Joke
Is there a mandatory oil dump order in place per the "Department of Hydrocarbons"? No, that's not true: neither a mandatory oil dumping order nor the "Department of Hydrocarbons" exist, and the creator of the video admitted it was a joke.
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘States With a Population Less Than DFW’
In August 2021, a May 2020 map purportedly depicting “states with a population less than DFW” (Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas) continued circulating on Facebook: In an appended post, the sharer wrote: “Wow this just blew my mind ”. H
Snopes→ Video Doesn’t Show America’s Afghan Allies Being Executed by Taliban
A genuine video of people being executed in 2013 was re-shared as if it were related to summer 2021 events in Afghanistan.
Snopes→ Why Do Some Monkeys Have Blue Balls?
Turns out it's not because they’re sexually frustrated.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Video With Clickbait Title Does NOT Show Biden Crying And Leaving Briefing — It Doesn’t Show Him At All
Does a Facebook video show President Joe Biden crying and leaving a press briefing, only to come back and ask former President Donald Trump to return? No, that's not true: the video is clickbait and shows footage of a Pentagon press brief
Snopes→ G-7 Leaders Can’t Sway Biden To Delay Afghanistan Withdrawal
Sharply divided leaders of the Group of Seven industrialized democracies clashed Tuesday over U.S. President Joe Biden’s insistence on withdrawing from Afghanistan by August 31.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: 31 US Troops Were NOT ‘Killed In Afghanistan Yesterday’ — Recycled Post Is About 2011 Attack
Were 31 U.S. servicemen killed in Afghanistan "yesterday"? No, that's not true: Versions of a post that has circulated since at least 2015 use details of a 2011 attack in which 30 U.S. servicemen and eight Afghans were killed when a U.S.
Snopes→ Is the US Government Paying Farmers To Destroy Crops?
From USDA: "Food production and manufacturing are widely dispersed throughout the U.S., and there are currently no wide-spread disruptions reported in the supply chain."
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Eating One Hot Dog Takes 35 Minutes Off Your Life’
On August 23 2021, the New York Post tweeted that eating one hot dog “takes 35 minutes off your life,” citing a “new study”: Eating 1 hot dog takes 35 minutes off life, study suggests https://t.co/9a9kHICofd pic.twitter.com/AX
AllSides→ CNN quickly calls out Jen Psaki’s lie that Americans are not ‘stranded’ in Afghanistan
https://www.theblaze.com/news/cnn-jen-psaki-lie-americans-not-stranded-afghanistan White House press se
AllSides→ Was the State Department Charging Americans $2K for Flights out of Afghanistan?
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/americans-flights-afghanistan/ Claim: Per an Aug. 14, 2021 notice, th
Full Fact→ Covid-19 vaccines are recommended at any stage of pregnancy
We’ve been asked on WhatsApp whether there is any reason to avoid the Covid-19 vaccines currently available in the UK during the first trimester of pregnancy. Dr Jo Mountfield, consultant obstetrician and vice president of the Royal College
Snopes→ Rolling Stones Drummer Charlie Watts Dies at Age 80
Charlie Watts, the self-effacing and unshakeable Rolling Stones drummer who helped anchor one of rock’s greatest rhythms sections and used his “day job” to support his enduring love of jazz, has died, according to his publicist. He was 80.
Logically→ India will prioritize Hindus and Sikhs in issuing ’emergency visas’ to Afghan nationals.
There are no reports that India prioritized any religion for repatriation from Afghanistan. All Afghan nationals are eligible for the e-Visa.
Full Fact→ Video of people falling from plane in Kabul shows a US aircraft
This article links to footage that is potentially distressing. A video with a misleading caption claiming to show the Taliban throwing people from a plane in Afghanistan has been seen more than 50,000 times on Instagram. The distressing footage actuall
Snopes→ US WWII Veteran Reunites with Italians He Saved As Children
It was a happy ending to a story that could easily have been a tragedy.
Snopes→ Paralympics Open in Empty Stadium — Just Like Olympics
The Paralympics are being held without fans, although organizers are planning to let some school children attend, going against the advice of much of the medical community.
Logically→ COVID-19 is nothing more than a bad seasonal flu.
Claims made by Dr. Roger Hodkinson are unfounded. COVID-19 is not the same as the seasonal flu.
Logically→ Pandas, elephants, and other wild animals are likely to become extinct by 2025.
None of these animal groups will become extinct within five years, although some specific species are critically endangered.
Poynter→ COVID deaths of Broward County teachers did happen, despite claims otherwise
A CNN report on Aug. 13 stated that in a 24-hour span, four Broward County, Florida, schoolteachers had died from COVID-19 and at least three of them were unvaccinated. The Broward Teachers Union later corrected the announcement that served as the b
Washington Post→ Jake Sullivan bungles a line about visa processing for Afghans
The White House national security adviser claimed the Trump administration did not process any special visas for Afghans after March 2020. Not so.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Man Touted By Others As ‘Ph.D., Oxford’ Did NOT Make True Statements About COVID-19 Vaccines To A School Board — Did NOT Attend Oxford University
Does a doctor share evidence of vaccine harm to an Ohio school board? No, that's not true: A man who appeared at a school board meeting in Ohio repeated multiple COVID-19 vaccine conspiracy theories that Lead Stories has previously debunk
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Yale Professor, Ivermectin Maker Say The Horse Dewormer Is NOT Proven Effective Against COVID-19 — Mississippi Hospitalized Man After Dose
Has ivermectin been proven a safe and life-saving treatment for COVID-19? No, that's not true: The manufacturer of the drug, Merck, says its scientists find no evidence ivermectin works as a COVID-19 treatment and are concerned by the lac
Snopes→ Did Tucker Carlson Say This About Nebraska Man’s Death to Stoke COVID Vaccine Fears?
The claim appeared to stem from former U.S. Democratic Sen. Al Franken, who hasn't yet returned our request for comment.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: NO Evidence of The FBI Ever Releasing A Study Ranking ‘Most Dangerous Zodiac Signs’
Did the Federal Bureau of Investigation release a study ranking zodiac signs in terms of "dangerousness"? No, that's not true: This is a recycled hoax that has circulated in blog posts as far back as 2017. There is also no publicly availa
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: More Than 75 Doctors Did NOT ‘Walk Out Of A South Florida Hospital Rather Than Treat The Unvaccinated’ — It Was A Demonstration
Did more than 75 doctors walk out of a south Florida hospital rather than treat unvaccinated COVID-19 patients? No, that's not true: The event was not a "walkout," as the doctors did not interrupt their workday to gather for what one part
Snopes→ Was the State Department Charging Americans $2K for Flights out of Afghanistan?
Chaotic evacuation efforts were underway amidst the Taliban takeover.
Snopes→ Did Stallone ‘Keep’ the Turtles from ‘Rocky’?
Red-eared sliders can live for decades, as these ones have.
Snopes→ Are Toasters Prohibited at Trump Rallies?
Toast, on the other hand, appears to be allowed.
Snopes→ Did NBC Report Vaccinated People Have Higher Levels of SARS-CoV-2?
Memes claimed that vaccinated people were therefore contributing to the mid-summer COVID-19 surge.
Health Feedback→ Janci Chunn Lindsay’s claims that COVID-19 vaccines are unsafe are inaccurate and unsupported by scientific evidence
REVIEW In early August 2021, several posts (see examples here, here, and here) claiming that COVID-19 vaccination will cause fertility problems, blood clotting, and increase the chances that the virus bypasses previous immunity to it (immune escape)
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Soviet Union Did NOT Take All Of Its Military Equipment From Afghanistan After the Soviet-Afghan War
Did the Soviet Union take all of its military equipment from Afghanistan after the Soviet-Afghan War? No, that's not true: Some of the Soviet equipment was abandoned in Afghanistan after the Soviets withdrew from the country. Even further
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Thatcher Effect’
In August 2021, an October 2018 post about the “Thatcher effect” and “thatcherized images” spread on Facebook, from a post originally shared by a New Hampshire-based optometrist’s office. It read: The Thatcher Effect. T
Snopes→ Igor Vovkovinskiy, Tallest Man in US, Dies in Minnesota
When he was 27, Vovkovinskiy traveled to New York City and was declared America’s tallest living person by a Guinness World Records adjudicator.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: California Ballot Envelopes DO Contain Holes — But Voter Information Is Protected
Do California ballots have holes in them so that others can see how someone voted? No, that's not true: A spokesperson for California's secretary of state told Lead Stories that the holes in ballot envelopes were included to aid Californi
Truth or Fiction?→ Uncensored Library in Minecraft
On August 23 2021, an Imgur user shared the following meme, which describes a “censored library” that exists within the game Minecraft and explaining its purpose within the popular video game: Text at the bottom of the meme read: There i