A whistleblower on Aug. 12 filed a complaint with the inspector general of the intelligence community, who found the information credible and determined that under the law it should be forwarded to the congressional intelligence committees. But the act
Search Results (2679) for: half
FactCheck.org→ Trump Twists Facts on Biden and Ukraine
President Donald Trump once again twisted the facts to claim that Joe Biden, as vice president, threatened to withhold “billions of dollars to Ukraine” unless it removed the prosecutor general who “was prosecuting” Biden’s
FactCheck.org→ Outdated Meme on Trump Administration Vacancies
Quick Take An outdated meme posted to Facebook this month falsely claims that the Trump administration is without a defense secretary, an interior secretary, an ambassador to the United Nations and a Secret Service director. Full Story A meme circulat
Snopes→ Where Have the Wild Birds Gone? 3 Billion Fewer Than 1970
The bird population in the United States and Canada was probably around 10.1 billion nearly half a century ago and has fallen to about 7.2 billion birds, according to a study.
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Illegal Immigrants Do NOT Get 43% Of All Food Stamps, 95% of Los Angeles Murder Warrants, 66% Of California Births, 60% Of HUD Housing
Do illegal immigrants get 43 percent of all food stamp benefits and are they suspects in 95 percent of all Los Angeles murders? Are 41 percent of them on welfare and are 66 percent of all births in California to undocumented mothers who get fr
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Nikola Tesla Describe Mobile Phones in 1926?
On September 19 2019, an Imgur user shared the following quote meme, attributing commentary that seemed to predict cell phones to futurist and engineer Nikola Tesla (misspelled once as “Nikolai Tesla” in the post): Did Nikolai Tesla inven
FactCheck.org→ Trump Bends the Facts on Lightbulbs
President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized energy-efficient lightbulbs, saying that the bulbs people are “being forced to use” are more expensive, contain hazardous gases and give off light that’s “not as good” as incandescents. Experts
Snopes→ Malicious Bots and Trolls Spread Vaccine Misinformation
At least half of parents of young children report having encountered negative messages about vaccines on social media.
Snopes→ Pastafarian Pastor Leads Prayer at Alaska Government Meeting
A pastor wearing a colander on his head offered the opening prayer on behalf of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster to open a local government meeting in Alaska.
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Democrats Did NOT Gain A Seat In Congress For Every 770,000 Illegals Who Filled Out The 2010 U.S. Census In A Sanctuary City Or State
Did Democrats gain a congressional seat for every 770,000 illegal immigrants counted in a sanctuary city or state by the 2010 U.S. census? No, that's not true: It is a claim based on bad math, ignoring election history, demographic trends show
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Donald Trump Say ‘Women, You Have to Treat Them Like S—‘ in a 1992 Interview?
On September 14 2019 the popular — but not always accurate — Facebook page “Occupy Democrats” shared a Donald Trump quote meme (archived here), alleging that the President said “women, you have to treat them like shit” in
Truth or Fiction?→ Tim Allen Meme: ‘Obamacare Website Costs More Than Trump’s Wall’
On September 14 2019, the Facebook page “ChairmanSizer” shared the following meme (archived here), claiming that actor and comedian Tim Allen was quoted as claiming that maintaining the official Affordable Care Act’s website costs mo
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘2045 Time Traveler Took This Video in the Future…’
On August 30 2019 the Facebook page “Mysterious Society” shared the following video, “Time Traveler Took This Video in the Year 2045”: In a rambling six-minute clip, a seemingly distressed man repeatedly impresses upon viewe
PolitiFact→ Donald Trump – Donald Trump exaggerates US energy independence
The Truth-o-Meter says: Half-True | Donald Trump exaggerates US energy independence President Donald Trump, eager to make good on a campaign promise to end the United States’ reliance on foreign energy, claimed a premature victory. "We a
FactCheck.org→ FactChecking the September Democratic Debate
Summary The false and exaggerated claims in the third Democratic debate included: Former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro accused former Vice President Joe Biden of “forgetting what you said two minutes ago” on Biden’s hea
PolitiFact→ Elizabeth Warren – Sen. Elizabeth Warren conflated votes on assault weapons, background checks
The Truth-o-Meter says: Half-True | Sen. Elizabeth Warren conflated votes on assault weapons, background checks Sen. Elizabeth Warren said that while the majority of Americans want tighter gun control laws related to registration or banning assault
Truth or Fiction?→ Did North Carolina’s GOP Trick Democrats into Attending a 9/11 Memorial, Then Pass an Unpopular Healthcare Bill?
On September 11 2019, a Facebook user shared the following post (archived here), which claimed in a three-part commentary that North Carolina Republicans used the anniversary of 9/11 to “trick” Democrats into missing a last-minute vote: &
Truth or Fiction?→ Starbucks 20-Ounce Venti vs. 12-Ounce Grande Video Experiment
On August 11 2019 the Facebook page Mercadotecnia Total shared the following video (translated title: “Effective Marketing: Venti vs Large @ Starbucks”): That iteration racked up more than five million views in just one month, and a co
Snopes→ OxyContin Maker Reaches Tentative Opioid-Crisis Settlement
OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma has reached a tentative deal with about half the states and thousands of local governments over its role in the nation’s deadly opioid epidemic.
Truth or Fiction?→ Was a Canadian Man ‘Euthanized’ After Not Receiving Enough Home Care Funding?
A 41-year-old Canadian man’s choice to undergo assisted suicide in August 2019 was used as blog fodder by an anti-abortion group based out of England. Sean Tagert first drew media coverage in September 2018, when he spoke to the Canadian Broadca
FactCheck.org→ Meme Misleads on Walmart Gun Sales
Quick Take A social media meme inaccurately claims that Walmart will no longer sell rifles. Walmart stopped selling “military-style rifles such as the AR-15,” in 2015, and has announced it will no longer sell ammunition for “military-style we
FactCheck.org→ Buttigieg Wrong About Climate Change’s Effect on Oceans
In making his case for taking swift action on climate change, Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg inaccurately said that “we could lose half the world’s oxygen because of what’s going on in the oceans.” Scientists say that
Truth or Fiction?→ 911 Dispatcher Donna Reneau/Debra Stevens Drowning Incident
On September 1 2019, the following meme appeared in the Facebook group “LIVE PD FANS NO BOUNDARIES” (archived here), purportedly detailing an exchange between the woman shown in the photograph (911 dispatcher Donna Reneau) and a victim of
Truth or Fiction?→ Are School Bus Stops Now More Dangerous Because of an All-Time High in Human Trafficking?
A back-to-school themed Facebook warning shared on September 5 2019 (archived here) declared that all school-age children must avoid all school bus stops because of an increased threat of human trafficking: Against a pastel background, black text d
PolitiFact→ Elizabeth Warren – Elizabeth Warren blamed 3 industries for 70% of greenhouse gases. That muddles the picture
The Truth-o-Meter says: Half-True | Elizabeth Warren blamed 3 industries for 70% of greenhouse gases. That muddles the picture Near the end of her turn on CNN’s climate change town-hall-a-thon, host Chris Cuomo asked Sen. Elizabeth Warren abo
Truth or Fiction?→ Dear ‘Ban Gun’ Teenagers, 11 Teens Die a Day from Texting and Driving
Facebook status memes about guns in general consistently appear in the now nearly constant wake of mass shootings, but a February 2018 iteration (archived here) aimed at “‘ban gun’ teenagers” puts forth an insincere argument
FactCheck.org→ Pence’s ‘Politically Correct’ Obama VA Claim
In an address to veterans, Vice President Mike Pence said “VA hospitals were removing Bibles” and “banning Christmas carols” under the last administration, and “will not be religion-free zones” under this administrat
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Study Does NOT Find Ginger Is 10,000x More Effective At Killing Cancer Than Chemo
Does a scientific study conclude that ginger is 10,000 times more effective at killing cancer than chemotherapy? No, that's not true: It is a gross misrepresentation of research that involved using with a ginger extract on mice in a lab and ce
Truth or Fiction?→ Tim Allen ‘Trump 2020 or America Is Dead’ Commentary
In late August and early September 2019, a number of Facebook users shared “pearls of wisdom” attributed to actor Tim Allen; topics discussed included United States President Donald Trump’s 2020 re-election campaign, the death of Ame
Truth or Fiction?→ Has ICE Refused to Deport Undocumented White Immigrants?
While the majority of attention on deportations by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency has centered around their actions against immigrants from Latin American countries, it is inaccurate to say that the agency does not
Truth or Fiction?→ Did a Teen in Colorado Fall Gravely Ill From Vaping?
On August 30 2019, a Facebook user shared a lengthy post (archived here) about her daughter Piper’s purported illness, in a screed blaming “vaping” for the girl’s condition. In the post, Johnson claimed that two weeks previou
FactCheck.org→ Amazon Doesn’t Produce 20% of Earth’s Oxygen
Q: Does the Amazon produce 20% of the world’s oxygen? A: No. Scientists estimate the percentage is closer to 6 to 9%, and the Amazon ultimately consumes nearly all of that oxygen itself. FULL QUESTION Does the Amazon Rainforest truly produce 20%
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘This View of Hurricane Dorian Is Unlike Anything I’ve Ever Seen’
On September 1 2019, the following image purportedly depicting a rainbow in the eye of Hurricane Dorian appeared on social media: The post was shared more than 30,000 times in two days. An added caption read: Dorian’s image from NASA!!!😲🙏
Climate Feedback→ Washington Examiner op-ed cherry-picks data to mislead readers about climate models
SCIENTISTS’ FEEDBACK SUMMARY This op-ed article published by The Washington Examiner (and republished by Zero Hedge) claims to provide evidence that climate models are not valid scientific tools able to inform decisions about climate change by
PolitiFact→ Pete Buttigieg – Fact-checking whether FEMA funds were shifted to indefinite detention at the border
The Truth-o-Meter says: Half-True | Fact-checking whether FEMA funds were shifted to indefinite detention at the border As Hurricane Dorian bore down on Florida, Democrats accused President Donald Trump of taking money intended for natural disaster
FactCheck.org→ Trump’s Steel Industry Claims
Summary To hear President Donald Trump tell the story of the U.S. steel industry, it went from “dead” or “going out of business” to “thriving” all because of the 25% tariffs on imported steel he instituted in March 2
Truth or Fiction?→ Were the Bones of Children Found on Epstein’s Island?
On August 20 2019, the Facebook page “The Trump Room” shared the following post (archived here), claiming that children’s bones were found on Jeffrey Epstein’s private island and questioning why this had not been reported: W
Lead Stories→ Fake News: Michelle Obama Did NOT Say "There Are Too Many White People"
Did former first lady Michelle Obama say "There are too many white people"? No, that's not true: several websites have published stories with that headline but they all seem to be mangled copies of a now-retracted story with a headline that mi
Truth or Fiction?→ Was Dictator Joseph Stalin Once a Hip, Young Democratic Socialist?
A meme claiming that Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin was once a hip, young atheist and a Democratic Socialist appeared on Facebook (archived here) in August 2019. Beneath a black-and-white photograph of an arguably handsome young man, text read: Josef
PolitiFact→ Ken Cuccinelli – The Trump administration is using DNA tests to crack down on “fake families” at the border
The Truth-o-Meter says: Half-True | The Trump administration is using DNA tests to crack down on “fake families” at the border Fearing that children were being smuggled across the U.S.-Mexico border, the Trump administration has sought to detec