On December 9 2019 — just days before a hotly contested and high-stakes general election on December 12 — British news organizations were apparently taken in by a disinformation effort as they spread a false accusation against protesters outside o
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Snopes→ Up to 13 Feared Dead in Volcanic Eruption Off New Zealand
Helicopter crews landed on White Island despite the danger and helped evacuate the dozens of survivors, some of them critically injured.
FactCheck.org→ A Misleading Take on Immigrant, Veterans Health Care
Quick Take A long-circulating headline on social media misleadingly tells users that Democrats chose to “vote down” a health records system for veterans while approving the same for immigrants who cross the border illegally. The bill in que
Truth or Fiction?→ Do You Need to Remove Barcodes from Donated Toys Because People Exchange Them for Cigarettes and Beer?
On December 9 2019, a number of news outlets published a syndicated article with the headlines “Donating Toys This Holiday Season? You Might Want to Remove the Barcode,” or, alternately, “Remove The Barcode If You’re Donating
Lead Stories→ Fake News: CIA Agent Does NOT Blow Whistle, Does NOT Say ‘We Supply Elite Pedophiles With Children’
Did a former CIA agent say the agency would supply elite pedophiles with child prostitutes in return for secret information, and that it was legal? No, that's not true: Former CIA case officer John Kiriakou was seen on video speaking on an ant
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Will Smith and Son Jaden NOT Dead In a Crash After Ultimate Car and Truck Collision
Did CNN report Will Smith and his son Jaden Smith died in a crash ? No, that's not true: a gang of hoaxers (likely from the Philippines) has launched another death hoax on the internet that tricks people into sharing quasi-random links on Face
Lead Stories→ Fake News: NO Study Says People Who Cry During Movies Are The Strongest People Of All
Did a scientific study find that people who cry during movies are the strongest people of all? No, that's not true: This is a click-bait claim that misrepresents the conclusions of a study about the affects of emotional stories on the brain's
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Jeff Bezos Didn’t Donate $100M LOL, He Took $100M of Amazon Stock and ‘Donated’ it to His Own Charity’ Meme
On November 25 2019, Twitter user @TheyCallMeChew tweeted about the controversial donation by Amazon chief executive officer Jeff Bezos of nearly $100 million to homelessness charities, claiming that the donation was not what it seemed: Jeff Bezos
Truth or Fiction?→ Anti-Vaxxer Arrested in Samoa Boasted of American Support via Social Media
Authorities in Samoa have arrested a disinformation-peddling anti-vaccine “activist” local time amid a measles outbreak that has killed 62 people that experts said was spurred in part by social media. Samoa Observer identified Edwin Tamase
FactCheck.org→ Republicans Cherry-Pick Facts on Impeachment
As the House Judiciary Committee began public hearings on whether to draft and approve articles of impeachment, Republicans presented a set of facts that they claimed cleared President Donald Trump of any wrongdoing. The Republican National Committee o
Truth or Fiction?→ Unsolicited Card Reader Warning
In October 2016, a Facebook user shared the following image of a purported “unsolicited card reader,” along with a nebulous warning to fellow users about the purported receipt of a an unexpected banking device in the mail: An image shows
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Male Birth Control Testing NOT Stopped, Men’s Testicles Did NOT Start Exploding
Was a medical experiment in India about male birth control stopped because the testicles of the patients started exploding during sexual intercourse? No, that's not true: the story was originally put out by a South African satire website that
Truth or Fiction?→ Rep. Duncan Hunter’s Office Backtracks on ‘Transcript’ After Announcing Guilty Plea
On December 4 2019 —a day after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to misuse campaign funds — the office of Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-California) took responsibility for an oddly-scripted release that accompanied his interview with a local news outlet an
Truth or Fiction?→ Was a Starbucks ‘PIG’ Cup Debate Amplified by a Police Chief’s Daughter?
An online dispute surrounding an unidentified police officer in Oklahoma and a local Starbucks took a turn in late November 2019 when someone claiming to be related to the officer’s supervisor chimed in on the side of police critics. “This
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Whole Foods Holiday Food Drive’ Post
A December 2 2019 Facebook status update excoriating Amazon and Whole Foods over a purported holiday food drive (and advising customers to move unpurchased items to the “donations” section) struck a chord and racked up tens of thousands of
FactCheck.org→ FactChecking Trump’s NATO Remarks
President Donald Trump repeated a slew of false claims to an international audience at the annual NATO summit: The overwhelming majority of captured Islamic State fighters are from Iraq and Syria. They are not, as Trump claimed, “mostly from Europe.
Truth or Fiction?→ Avoid #GivingTuesday Scams
“Giving Tuesday” or #GivingTuesday posts are all over social media the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, but as is often the case when cash is flowing and donations are a click away, scammers and profiteers have made their way into the donations
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Best-selling Author Jennifer Jaynes NOT Assassinated For Exposing Vaccine Fraud
Was best-selling author Jennifer Jaynes assassinated for exposing vaccine fraud? No, that's not true: Jaynes, who wrote domestic thrillers and children's books, died of a single gunshot that investigators ruled was self-inflicted. Although her
FactCheck.org→ Zelensky’s Remarks About Trump, In Context
President Donald Trump said the impeachment inquiry should be “case over” because Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters “very strongly that President Trump did absolutely nothing wrong.” But that’s not what
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Leaked Pentagon FunVax Video Does NOT Show Flu Vaccine Used To Modify Human Behavior
Does a leaked Pentagon video show that a flu vaccine was used to modify human behavior? No, that's not true: The video that was purportedly recorded in 2005 and "leaked" from the Defense Department was apparently produced in 2011 as a promotio
Truth or Fiction?→ Do Images Show Tears of Grief, Tears of Change, Onion Tears, and Laughing Tears?
In December 2019, a months-old post by the Facebook page “Words of Women” that purportedly showed a four-square collection of tears produced by grief, change, laughter, and cutting onions continued to circulate: The status updat
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Nancy Pelosi NOT Asked To Leave Children’s Benefit After Drunken Outburst
Was Nancy Pelosi asked to leave a children's benefit after a drunken outburst? No, that's not true. The story was published by a liberal satire website that tries to mislead Trump supporters and Republicans into sharing made up stories that ar
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Asylum Seekers Are NOT Housed In Luxury Hotels While Homeless Veterans Are Left On The Street
Are asylum seekers housed in luxury hotels in the United States, while homeless veterans are left in the street? No, that's not true: Refugees who apply for asylum in the United States are eligible for limited financial support for housing, bu
Truth or Fiction?→ Was Rep. Ilhan Omar ‘Recruited by a Foreign Government’?
On November 25 2019, the co-founder of a far-right group supporting United States President Donald Trump took to Twitter to misrepresent allegations against Democratic Party Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota. Ryan Fournier, a leader of the group Students F
Truth or Fiction?→ Dyslexie Font
In November 2017, the Facebook page “Feminist Info” shared a screenshot describing a font called “Dyslexie,” designed for people with dyslexia: That screenshot read: The Dyslexie font Graphic designer Christian Boer
FactCheck.org→ Warren Misleads on Her Kids’ Schooling
Sen. Elizabeth Warren misleadingly told a group of school-choice activists that her children “went to public schools,” not private ones. Warren’s campaign later clarified that her daughter attended public school, while her son mostly attended
Truth or Fiction?→ Was Jeff Bezos’ $98 Million ‘Gift’ to Homeless the Equivalent of $45 to a Person Earning $50,000 Annually?
On November 23 2019 @EatTheRichPod shared the following tweet, referencing volumes of laudatory headlines about Amazon chief executive officer Jeff Bezos donating $98 million to homeless people — asserting that Bezos’ generosity was equivalen
FactCheck.org→ Unpacking Sanders’ ‘Climate Refugee’ Statistic
In the last Democratic debate, Sen. Bernie Sanders said that the United Nations is projecting “hundreds of millions of climate refugees” in the “years to come” as a result of climate change. The U.N., however, doesn’t currently endorse a part
Climate Feedback→ Ian Plimer op-ed in The Australian again presents long list of false claims about climate
SCIENTISTS’ FEEDBACK SUMMARY This op-ed in The Australian by Ian Plimer, titled “Let’s not pollute minds with carbon fears”, makes many claims: that polar ice is not melting, that human-caused CO2 emissions can’t cause clim
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Has Anyone Had to Give Back the Security Deposit?’ Landlord Round Table Facebook Group Post
On November 20 2019, a Twitter user posted an unredacted apparent screenshot from the Facebook group “Landlord Round Table,” in which an original poster appeared to ask fellow landlords if any of them ever had “to give back the secu
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Now Listen You Rich People, Weep and Wail’ Tumblr Post or Bible Verse?
In November 2019, a Tumblr screenshot beginning “now listen you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming on you” was shared to the Facebook group “Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s Revolutionary Meme Stash̶
Truth or Fiction?→ Are Koalas ‘Functionally Extinct’ as of November 2019?
In November 2019, Facebook page “The Other 98%” was among others on social media sharing the news that koalas had become “functionally extinct” after bushfires in Australia: Under a photograph of a koala that appeared to
FactCheck.org→ Erroneous Claim of ‘End of Youth Hunting’ in Virginia
Quick Take Posts on Facebook wrongly claim that Virginia has “announced the end of youth hunting.” The state’s Department of Game & Inland Fisheries confirmed that there have been “no such changes” in state laws, and s
Truth or Fiction?→ Trump Regurgitates ‘Crowdstrike’ Conspiracy Theory in Call to Fox News
United States President Donald Trump called into a Fox News program on November 22 2019, spending nearly an hour pushing an already-debunked conspiracy theory that was also refuted during the congressional impeachment inquiry against him. During his c
Snopes→ How ‘Frivolous’ Lawsuits Threaten Media, Including Snopes
A funny John Oliver segment about SLAPP suits imparts serious truths and some helpful insight to better understand the lawsuit threatening Snopes.
FactCheck.org→ FactChecking the November Democratic Debate
Summary We spotted several false claims and factual flubs: South Bend Mayor Peter Buttigieg falsely claimed that President Donald Trump “had to confess in writing, in court, to illegally diverting charitable contributions that were supposed to g
FactCheck.org→ Trump Cherry-Picks Sondland Testimony
President Donald Trump said he “turned off the television” after Ambassador Gordon Sondland testified that the president told him in a phone call, “I want nothing [from Ukraine]. I want no quid pro quo.” But Sondland had a lot more to say than
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘$60 Women’s Self-Defense Kit Sold by a Black-Owned Business’ Facebook Post
A popular November 17 2019 Facebook post purportedly shows a women’s self-defense kit in the style of a makeup bag, and the collection of stylish items was described as being sold by a black-owned business: Its image showed iridescent brass kn
FactCheck.org→ Social Posts Distort Facts on Political Relationships
Quick Take Social media posts falsely claim that California Gov. Gavin Newsom is House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s nephew, and that Rep. Adam Schiff has a sister who is married to the son of George Soros. It also falsely states that a daughter of form
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Nancy Pelosi Did NOT Approve $1 Million Expense Accounts For Any Rep That Votes For Impeachment
Did House Speaker Nancy Pelosi offer an extra $1 million expense account to any member of congress who votes for the Trump impeachment? No, that's not true: The claim that Speaker Pelosi offered a financial bribe for impeachment support was pu