Quick Take A 2017 meme has resurfaced on Facebook, spreading outdated speculation that the Republicans would not fund the federal Children’s Health Insurance Program. In fact, President Donald Trump signed bipartisan legislation in January 2018 t
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PolitiFact→ Donald Trump – Donald Trump says William Taylor and George Kent are Never Trumpers. There’s no evidence they are
The Truth-o-Meter says: False | Donald Trump says William Taylor and George Kent are Never Trumpers. There’s no evidence they are As the first day of public impeachment hearings began with testimony from William Taylor and George Kent, Pre
FactCheck.org→ Posts Falsely Claim Trump ‘Stole’ From Vets
Quick Take Viral Facebook posts falsely claim that President Donald Trump “stole” charitable donations meant for veterans. A court ruled Trump illegally used his foundation for political purposes when it held a fundraiser for veterans, but
FactCheck.org→ Blowing the Whistle on a Misinforming Meme
Quick Take Memes circulating widely on social media misidentify a former White House staffer as the whistleblower who touched off the impeachment inquiry into President Trump. Full Story Pictures of White House staffers from 2016 flooded social media
FactCheck.org→ Misleading Meme on First Three Bills by Democrats
Quick Take An old Facebook meme from April recently went viral again, wrongly identifying the first three bills introduced by House Democrats in January. The first three Democratic bills did not seek to impeach the president, end the Electoral College
Truth or Fiction?→ Congress ‘Rejects’ Social Security Increase: Facebook Users Regurgitate Bogus Claim
In a prime example of easily digestible disinformation finding ready distribution on Facebook, a citation-free, years-old claim ginning up outrage against lawmakers was resurrected as a text-based graphic in September 2019, and has been shared thousa
Truth or Fiction?→ Who Runs ‘Journalist Excellence Worldwide’?
In early November 2019, the Facebook page “Journalist Excellence Worldwide” began making engagement inroads, with content shared to large groups and newly-viral, unrelated pages. However — no matter how convincing a page might appear at
Truth or Fiction?→ Facebook Claims We’re ‘Clickbait.’ And It Won’t Explain Why.
Even as Facebook hides behind “free speech” concerns to justify a lack of action against the spread of far-right content, it does reserve the right to determine what constitutes “clickbait” with no explanation as to how that de
FactCheck.org→ Bogus Warren Quote Ignites Immigration Anger
Quick Take Immigration comments by Sen. Elizabeth Warren have been selectively edited in a misleading way and are circulating widely online. Full Story A meme that misleadingly rephrased the words of Sen. Elizabeth Warren — one of 17 candidates
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Modesto Is Woke,’ ‘Epstein Was Murdered’ Traffic Sign
On November 6 2019, the following post was shared to Reddit’s r/pics, featuring a roadside traffic sign reading “Epstein was murdered” in digitized text: Modesto CA is woke from pics At the time the image was
FactCheck.org→ Trump Twists Impeachment Polls
A number of national polls show more Americans want President Donald Trump impeached and removed from office than those who don’t. In swing states, however, a majority opposes removing Trump from office via impeachment, even as a majority support
FactCheck.org→ Viral Posts Distort Impeachment Inquiry Rules
Quick Take Facebook posts purport to outline “the rules” of the House impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump, but they distort the facts in doing so. Full Story The House voted Oct. 31 to approve a resolution further advancing
Truth or Fiction?→ Have Gender Reveal Parties Killed More People Than Anti-Fascists?
On October 31 2019, a Facebook page shared a text-based status update asserting that gender reveals had caused more deaths than antifascist protesters, popularly referred to as “antifa”: That status update appeared to reference a gender
FactCheck.org→ Meme Falsely Claims Obama Released al-Baghdadi
Quick Take Various memes circulating online falsely claim that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the Islamic State leader who recently died during a U.S. raid, had been released from U.S. military custody under President Barack Obama. He was actually released in 2
FactCheck.org→ Misleading Posts Target GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz
Quick Take Social media posts distort the facts around an 11-year-old, dismissed DUI charge against Rep. Matt Gaetz. They also leave the false impression that he “stole from dying people.” Full Story Posts about Rep. Matt Gaetz circula
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘This Isn’t About Free Expression’: Twitter Chief Dorsey Announces Ban on Political Ads
Twitter’s chief executive officer has announced that his platform will ban political advertisements, saying that they represent new challenges to political discourse. “This isn’t about free expression. This is about paying for reach,
FactCheck.org→ Dubious Posts Tie Political Families to Ukraine Work
Quick Take There’s no evidence for social media claims that the children of Nancy Pelosi, Mitt Romney and John Kerry are working for “Ukrainian gas companies” or sitting “on the board of directors for energy companies doing busi
Truth or Fiction?→ Facebook ‘News’ Service to Include ‘Diverse’ Category, Sites Associated With White Nationalism
Facebook has announced a news service aimed at providing users with a “personalized” slate of stories from four different types of categories: general, topical, local, and “diverse”: Diversity publishers as those focused on key
FactCheck.org→ Headlines Spin Ukrainian Donations to Clinton Charity
Quick Take Viral headlines wrongly suggest that the Ukrainian government gave more money than any other country to the Clinton Foundation. But the 2015 news report cited does not support that. Full Story Misleading headlines spread across social me
Truth or Fiction?→ Conservative Versus Liberal, ‘Taken at a California Public High School This Year’ Meme
In October 2018, Facebook user Matt Gaelitz shared a slide titled “Conservative vs. Liberal” along with a status update: Taken at a California public high school this year. This is what indoctrination is all about. On June 4 2018, the same
Truth or Fiction?→ Did a Mississippi Man Hack His Way Into Helping ‘Food Stamp’ Recipients?
A persistent meme that resurfaced on October 23 2019 about a modern-day Robin Hood is in reality a prank posted by someone out of “social media fun.” The graphic shows a photograph of a man besides a Fox News logo, accompanied by a short d
Washington Post→ Fact-checking Trump’s spin about the ‘great outcome’ in Syria
The president glossed over uncomfortable facts and pitched fake ones as he declared victory in Syria
FactCheck.org→ Posts Resurface Made-up ‘Congressional Reform’ Bill
Quick Take Viral Facebook posts claim President Donald Trump has endorsed a supposed “Congressional Reform Act of 2017.” But no such bill exists. The text in the posts has circulated for years without references to Trump, and it is riddled
Truth or Fiction?→ ’71-Year-Old Man Waiting Up at 2AM to Welcome Three American Hostages’ Meme
In late September 2019, Facebook user Pedro Paul Saldaña shared the following meme, which claimed an appended image depicted President Donald Trump aboard Air Force One waiting to greet freed American hostages: The text on the meme read: A 71 year o
Lead Stories→ Real News: Donald Trump DOES Give Female Astronaut The Finger After She Fact Checks Him
Did President Donald Trump flip off a female astronaut who gently fact-checked him about a space walk? Yes, that's true: A body language expert -- who is a Republican Trump supporter -- concluded that when the president used his middle finger
Snopes→ Facebook Ramps Up Election Security Efforts Ahead of 2020
The company also announced it has removed four networks of fake, state-backed misinformation-spreading accounts based in Russia and Iran.
Truth or Fiction?→ Did a Coney Island Sideshow Save Hundreds of Premature Babies in the Early 1900s?
On October 15 2019, a Facebook post with images relayed a purported history of neonatology and the role of a man named Dr. Martin Couney, who created a sideshow of tiny infants as a way of covering the costs of saving premature babies: Black-and-w
Truth or Fiction?→ Can Consuming Too Much Coffee Under Stress Cause Schizophrenia Symptoms?
On October 15 2019, the Facebook page “Weird Facts” shared the following “fact meme,” which claimed that the combination of a lot of coffee and a lot of stress could cause symptoms of schizophrenia — presumably in people no
FactCheck.org→ Viral Posts Fabricate a ‘President Mozzarella’ Gaffe
Quick Take Social media lit up with a false claim that President Donald Trump referred to Italian President Sergio Mattarella as “President Mozzarella.” The transcripts and videos prove he didn’t. Full Story A false claim that Presid
FactCheck.org→ Obama Didn’t Authorize ‘Lying’ by the Media
Quick Take Social media posts falsely claim that former President Barack Obama signed a bill that made it permissible for “the media” to get “away with lying.” The bill had no bearing on private media outlets or what they can re
FactCheck.org→ Instagram Post Falsely Links Flu Vaccine to Polio
Quick Take A popular Instagram post falsely claims “over 1,100 people died from reactions to the [flu] shot” in 2018, and suggests that the immunization gave some children polio. The flu vaccine cannot give anyone polio and there is no evidence to
Climate Feedback→ Telegraph article on climate change mixes accurate and unsupported, inaccurate claims, misleads with false balance
SCIENTISTS’ FEEDBACK SUMMARY This article in The Telegraph attempts to discuss the science of observed global warming and the factors responsible. However, mixed in with some accurate factual statements are claims that give readers the impress
Truth or Fiction?→ ABC News Yanks ‘Slaughter in Syria’ Video Revealed as YouTube Clip Filmed in Kentucky
On October 14 2019, ABC News walked back a story that aired on two of its marquee programs after the footage was revealed to be a YouTube clip filmed in the United States in 2017. “This video obtained by ABC News, appears to show the fury of the
FactCheck.org→ Posts Put Words in Thomas Jefferson’s Mouth
Quick Take Facebook posts in support of President Donald Trump’s 2020 reelection erroneously claim that former President Thomas Jefferson once said “the government will one day be corrupt and filled with liars, and the people will flock to the
FactCheck.org→ Misleading Narrative About a Supposed ‘Ukrainian Arms Dealer’
Quick Take An online story says House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff “are both connected to a Ukrainian arms dealer” through a 2013 fundraiser. But the supposed “Ukrainian arms dealer” owns a California company tha
Truth or Fiction?→ Trump Administration Rushes To Distance Itself From Massacre Video at Far-Right ‘Meme Event’
United States President Donald Trump’s administration and other right-wing figures attempted to distance themselves on October 14 2019 from a violent propaganda video, as coverage spread of a scene altered to depict Trump gunning down his “
Lead Stories→ Old News: Nike Lost $3.75 Billion in Market Cap After Colin Kaepernick Ad But Gained Much More Since
Did Nike lose $3.75 billion in market cap since running its controversial ad campaign starring Colin Kaepernick? Yes, it did but the stock has bounced back since and (at the time of writing) the market capitalization of Nike stands at $146.55
FactCheck.org→ Pelosi Didn’t Raid Social Security for Impeachment Inquiry
Quick Take A viral, made-up story sowed confusion among social media users over whether House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has diverted Social Security money to the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump. She didn’t. Full Story House Speaker
Truth or Fiction?→ Disinformation Peddlers Push ‘October 16th’ Conspiracy Theory
A gaggle of specious blogs and social media accounts set about inflaming tensions for their followers in a set of posts reminiscent of other fake controversies. The posts center on vaguely-worded “threats” and wide-ranging military deploym
FactCheck.org→ Outburst at AOC Town Hall Was Staged
Quick Take A political group took credit for planting a woman who espoused “eating babies” to address climate change at a recent town hall event hosted by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. But some have still misrepresented the woman as “