On April 26 2019, a Facebook user shared a screenshot (archived here) of another post, which provided an alarming account of complex abduction attempts purportedly occurring in Ontario, California. The original post was shared by an account with the n
Search Results (1377) for: heard
FactCheck.org→ Viral Claim Blurs Marijuana, Gun Policies
Quick Take Social posts wrongly claim that states legalizing marijuana also have “legislated” that those who use the drug cannot have guns. Actually, a long-standing federal law prohibits marijuana users from possessing or purchasing firear
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Smelling Farts Does NOT Help You Live Longer According to Science
Does smelling farts (of your husband/wife or other people) help you live longer or does it protect you from cancer? No, that's not true: an old study about a compound named AP39 that contains hydrogen sulfide (which also happens to be present
Truth or Fiction?→ Is There a Snapchat Sex Trafficking Ring in Lawrence, Massachusetts?
On April 24 2019, a Facebook user shared the following status (archived here), claiming that a Snapchat sex trafficking ring was operating in Lawrence, Massachusetts: So there’s a sex trafficking ring going on in Lawrence Mass. If you get a random p
FactCheck.org→ Giuliani’s Obstruction Distortions
In an interview about the Mueller report, Rudy Giuliani, President Donald Trump’s personal attorney, distorted the facts in repeatedly making the case that there was “no obstruction” by Trump. Giuliani claimed “there is overwhelmin
FactCheck.org→ Debunking Mueller’s ‘Conflicts’
The Russia report released April 18 contradicts President Donald Trump’s claims that special counsel Robert Mueller had two conflicts of interest that prevented him from conducting an impartial investigation: Former White House Chief Strategist
Truth or Fiction?→ Are These Presidents Obama and Trump’s Statements on the Notre Dame Fire?
,On April 16 2019 the Facebook page “Proud Liberal Americans” shared a subsequently popular meme (archived here), purportedly contrasting statements provided by United States Presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump about the fire that gut
Truth or Fiction?→ Were Black WWI Veterans in Uniform Lynched During the Red Summer of 1919?
In February 2019, the following image appeared (archived here), with the description “victorious black soldiers returning to the U.S. from World War I are lynched while still in uniform.” An attached image showed a black man being dragge
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘They Pushed Her’ Facebook Post
On April 17 2019, a Facebook post (archived here) began circulating, purporting to tell the tragic story (“they pushed her”) of a young girl named Carmen Winstead, as well as the fates of the classmates responsible for her death: They push
FactCheck.org→ Rep. Ilhan Omar’s 9/11 Comments in Context
The controversy over Rep. Ilhan Omar’s reference to the 9/11 terrorist attacks continued to boil on the political talk shows on Sunday. White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders claimed that Omar had spoken “dismissively” about the 9/
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar DID NOT Praise the Destruction of Notre Dame
Did U.S. Reps. Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar praise the destruction of the Cathedral of Notre Dame? No, that's not true: It is a satirical story produced by a well-known hoax and satire publisher. The quotes from these members of congress are f
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Nancy Pelosi NOT Too Drunk to Sign Her Name at 8 AM
Did U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi show up too drunk to sign her name at 8 o'clock in the morning? No, that's not true: The story was published by a liberal satire website that tries to educate gullible Trump supporters and Republican
Truth or Fiction?→ Does Flint Still Not Have Clean Water?
In April 2019, a July 2017 text-based status update (archived here) about a lack of clean water in Flint, Michigan continued making the rounds on social media. Across a blue sky background, white text read as follows: 1188 days still no clean water fo
Truth or Fiction?→ Does Flint Still Not Have Clean Water?
In April 2019, a July 2017 text-based status update (archived here) about a lack of clean water in Flint, Michigan continued making the rounds on social media. Across a blue sky background, white text read as follows: 1188 days still no clean water fo
FactCheck.org→ Trump Wrong About Tax Law
Asked whether he believes federal law requires him to give Congress his tax returns, President Donald Trump responded, “There’s no law whatsoever.” He’s wrong about that. There is, in fact, a federal tax law that specifically st
Truth or Fiction?→ Were 70 Christians Massacred by Muslims in March 2019?
On March 19 2019, a Facebook user shared the status update below (archived here), claiming that 70 Nigerian Christians had been massacred by Muslims one day previously: Yesterday, muslims marched into a college in Nigeria, separated out the Christian
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Muslims Did NOT Rally In New York City Demanding Their Sharia Rights!
Did muslims rally in New York City demanding their sharia rights? No, that's not true: A video posted on a pro-Trump facebook group page purporting to show a March 24, 2019 demonstration demanding "sharia rights" was actually an anti-hate marc
PolitiFact→ No, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez probably didn't say that
Maybe you heard that U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said owning a gun is not a right, because "if it was a right, it would be in the Constitution." The quote appeared in multiple posts on Facebook, printed over a picture of the congresswo
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Why Did Slaves Come to America?’ School Worksheet
In March 2019, two viral Facebook posts circulated with an image of an alarmingly inaccurate “Why Did Slaves Come to America?” worksheet. The viral Facebook posts were part of a larger controversy in February and March 2019 about myriad i
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Mouse In Red Bull Can Likely Crawled In From Arkansas Man’s Truck, Not At Factory
Did an Arkansas man find a dead mouse at the bottom of his Red Bull can? Yes, but it most likely crawled into the open can when the man left it in his truck overnight. The mouse is small enough to sneak through the opening, but appears too fre
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Dave Chappelle Say ‘If You Stopped Listening to Michael Jackson … I Have Some Bad News About the Catholic Church’?
The March 2019 wide release of documentary Leaving Neverland prompted a flurry of social media activity, among the posts was a meme purportedly quoting comedian Dave Chappelle about reaction to the documentary, Michael Jackson, and the Catholic Church
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Say Her Girl Scout Troop Recreated the Challenger Launch?
On March 10 2019, right-wing YouTube personality and conspiracy theorist Mark Dice shared the following meme to Twitter and Facebook about a purported quote by U.S. Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: First, Dice tweeted the image above with no
FactCheck.org→ Old and New Claims in Trump’s CPAC Address
In a two-hour address to the Conservative Political Action Conference on March 2, President Donald Trump made questionable and false claims about the fight against ISIS, tariffs and African American income. He also repeated a bevy of claims we’v
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Real Momo Videos,’ Viral Hoaxes, and Ostension
In the aftermath of the March 2019 U.S. media frenzy surrounding the Momo challenge, a number of “real Momo videos” have opportunistically surfaced and quickly racked up large share counts. We came across several of the likely many survivi
Truth or Fiction?→ Was Michael Cohen Hillary Clinton’s ‘Personal Lawyer’?
On February 28 2019, the Facebook page “I am not a dictator” shared the following meme (archived here), alleging that President Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen was once the personal lawyer of Hillary Clinton and/or the Clinton Fo
Truth or Fiction?→ Does a Viral Video Depict a Crab Eating Her Babies?
On February 20 2019, UNILAD shared a video to Facebook titled “Red Crab Eats Her Newborn Babies.” The clip was wildly popular, racking up millions of views and shares in under 24 hours (the video itself can be viewed here.) It was captioned
Truth or Fiction?→ Uber Sex Trafficking Warning?
On February 19 2019, a woman shared a harrowing account via Facebook which reported that a phony Uber driver in Tampa had nearly successfully abducted her for the purposes of sex trafficking. In her post, Emmy Hurley described the purported brush with
Truth or Fiction?→ Heinz Ketchup Ingredients, U.S. vs UK
On February 14 2019, Vani Hari (popularly known as the “Food Babe” in the media) shared a graphic that compared the purported difference between Heinz Ketchup’s ingredient list in the United Kingdom versus the United States: The imag
FactCheck.org→ FactChecking Trump’s El Paso Rally
Summary President Donald Trump made several claims in his Feb. 11 political rally in El Paso that distorted the facts, including: He said “the trade deficit really went down very big this last month,” leaving out the fact that the previous month w
Truth or Fiction?→ Was the Original ‘Lone Ranger’ a Black Man?
In January 2019, a meme that appeared to be a screenshot of an older post asserting that the real Lone Ranger was a black man named Bass Reeves spread on social media: Above what appeared to be an archival photograph of a black man and the television
Truth or Fiction?→ Is Chuck E. Cheese’s Pizza Recycled?
On February 12 2019, YouTube star Shane Dawson published his second video in his conspiracy series — called, appropriately, “Investigating Conspiracies with Shane Dawson” — and by far the most popular of its three topics was a claim th
PolitiFact→ 7 questions about the Green New Deal
You may have heard a lot recently about the "Green New Deal," championed by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and co-sponsored by more than 60 Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives. But what’s it all about? Let&rs
FactCheck.org→ Video: Trump’s SOTU Address
For the second time, President Donald Trump delivered a State of the Union address peppered with false, misleading and exaggerated statements — many that we’ve heard before. In the following video, we highlight five of the claims Trump made
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Alabama Declare Fetuses Are People?
On January 22 2019, New York State’s Reproductive Health Act was signed into law, inflaming people across the United States. Arguments raged on social networks, largely due to misinterpretations of the law and a mistaken belief that it enabled el
FactCheck.org→ Bogus Claim About ‘Impeaching’ Pelosi
Quick Take A claim that the White House may impeach House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is false, but it is still circulating widely online. It stems from a petition created by a conservative commentator and posted on the White House’s web page, “We
FactCheck.org→ More Voter Fraud Misinformation from Trump
President Donald Trump wrongly claims that “58,000 non-citizens voted in Texas, with 95,000 non-citizens registered to vote.” This latest voter fraud misinformation from the president is based on the state’s efforts to match driver
Truth or Fiction?→ Chuck Schumer Border Wall 2013 vs. 2018
In January 2019, the Facebook page “McGroarty for Freedom” shared the following meme, which contrasted purported positions held by Sen. Chuck Schumer in 2013 and 2018 on the topic of a border wall to separate the United States from Mexico:
FactCheck.org→ Harris’ Campaign Kickoff Claims
Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris made a few false and misleading claims in two events that kicked off her 2020 presidential campaign. In a speech in her home state of California on Jan. 27, Harris said “paychecks aren’t keeping up” with
Truth or Fiction?→ Is Bread Bad for Ducks?
In January 2019, the Facebook page “Wild at Heart Rescue” shared the following illustration while claiming that it is dangerous — even potentially lethal — to feed bread to ducks: The drawings depicted waterfowl and the text said: Plea
Snopes→ Insulin Probe on Deck as Congress Opens Drug Price Hearings
Sen. Charles Grassley says he's heard stories of people reducing their insulin doses to save money and vows to "get to the bottom of the insulin price problem."