A false interpretation of new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) spread online in late August 2020, buoyed by both social media and various local television news outlets. The result was a slew of posts and stories pushing t
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Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Jeepers Creepers Rises Every 23 Years and Last Woke Up in 1997’
On August 29 2020, the Facebook page “90’s Kids Only” shared the following post concerning the film Jeepers Creepers — and purported film lore that holds its monster “rose every 23 years,” most recently in 1997:
Health Feedback→ Human DNA alone does not produce a positive result on the RT-PCR test for SARS-CoV-2
REVIEW A blog post claiming that the SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid test would give positive results for every test because it also identifies human DNA was published in April 2020 and has received more than 13,000 interactions on Facebook and other social
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: 39 Missing Kids Were NOT Found In A Double Wide Trailer In Georgia — But ‘Operation Not Forgotten’ Was Covered Extensively In The Media
Were 39 missing kids found in a double wide trailer in Georgia, and is the media ignoring this story? No, that's not true. The U.S. Marshals announced in a press conference that they had rescued 26 missing children, found 13 others in a m
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Deputy Rittenhouse’ and the Kenosha Sheriff’s Department
On August 27 2020, amid algorithmically-charged discourse about teenaged shooting suspect Kyle Rittenhouse in Kenosha, Wisconsin, rumors on Facebook and Twitter appeared with claims that Rittenhouse’s father was “Deputy Rittenhouse”
Health Feedback→ A vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 would be useful even if the survival rate from COVID-19 is high
REVIEW A misleading claim circulating on Facebook in August 2020 questions whether a vaccine against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, would be useful because the “survival rate [of COVID-19 is] close to 100% without a vaccine”. This c
FactCheck.org→ Final Night of the Republican Convention
Summary At the close of the Republican National Convention, the president distorted the facts on the economy, COVID-19, health care, the military, immigration, policing and foreign affairs: Trump again claimed he built the “greatest” and “strong
Full Fact→ Claims of pandemic fall in child anxiety may not apply across the whole country
This week many media outlets covered a new study which suggests that anxiety levels among young people fell during the pandemic. The study was based on a survey of around 1,000 year 9 students in the south west of England. It found that students
The Dispatch→ Will COVID Vaccine Holdouts in Australia Be Banned From Travel, Restaurants, or School?
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Full Fact→ What do we know about Covid-19 transmission in schools?
Next week children in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are set to go back to school, many of them for the first time since March. Some children in Northern Ireland returned this week and children in Scotland returned to school earlier this month. A
Health Feedback→ People infected with SARS-CoV-2 can transmit the virus to others, even if they do not show symptoms of the disease and are not considered sick
REVIEW Hundreds of posts like this one were published on Facebook on and around 23 Aug. 2020 claiming that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has “[convinced] the world that you can be sick without having symptoms.” These
FactCheck.org→ Trump, Hahn Mischaracterize Data on COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma
In a hyped press briefing the eve of the Republican National Convention, President Donald Trump falsely said that convalescent plasma had been “proven to reduce mortality by 35%,” even though the therapy has not yet been shown to be effective for C
FactCheck.org→ Misleading Claim Swirls Over Pledge of Allegiance at DNC
Quick Take The prime-time programming for the Democratic National Convention every night on TV included a recital of the Pledge of Allegiance, including the phrase “under God.” Two individual Democratic caucuses omitted those words during d
Health Feedback→ Listicle of “facts” about COVID-19 contains numerous inaccurate and misleading claims
REVIEW An article on a website named Swiss Policy Research, formerly Swiss Propaganda Research, claims to give readers the “Facts about [COVID-19], provided by experts in the field.” Published in March 2020 and updated as recently as August 2020
FactCheck.org→ Republican Convention Night 2
Summary On the second night of the Republican National Convention, we found: White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow falsely claimed that Trump inherited a “stagnant” economy on the verge of recession. Actually, economists were predicting contin
Truth or Fiction?→ Frida Kahlo ‘If I Have to Say It … I Do Not Want It Anymore’
On August 22 2020, the Facebook page “She Is Fire” attributed the following poem — often titled “If I Have to Say It” — to artist Frida Kahlo: What became a text-only post read: Frida Kahlo to her husband…
Snopes→ Kim Klacik: Investigating Her Viral Campaign Ad Touring Baltimore’s Streets
As a fast-rising star within the party, she was among speakers at the 2020 Republican National Convention.
FactCheck.org→ Republican Convention Opening Night
Summary Speakers in the first night of the 2020 Republican National Convention engaged in political spin, particularly in making claims about Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s policy positions: Several speakers at the convention mislea
The Dispatch→ Did Democrats Remove ‘Under God’ From the Pledge of Allegiance at the DNC?
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FactCheck.org→ Trump’s Talking Points
As the Republican National Convention begins today, we present here a rundown of President Donald Trump’s repeated false and misleading claims during the 2020 campaign. If Trump’s recent speeches are a guide, he may well repeat some of thes
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Image Is NOT One Of National Geographic’s Photos Of The Year
Did an image of a massive shark springing from the water win a "National Geographic" photo of the year prize? No, that's not true: This image was created by a 3D graphic artist who goes by the name "Alexyz3D" and the image was not given t
FactCheck.org→ New ‘Plandemic’ Video Peddles Misinformation, Conspiracies
The second part of “Plandemic” — a documentary-style video that presents a sweeping conspiracy theory about the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic, patents and vaccines — landed on Aug. 18, spinning together many of the falsehoods about t
Snopes→ Loughlin, Giannulli Get Prison Time in College Bribery Plot
They are among nearly 30 prominent parents to plead guilty in the case, which federal prosecutors dubbed "Operation Varsity Blues."
AFP Fact Check→ Misleadingly edited Kamala Harris clip used to claim she called young voters ‘stupid’
A short video clip of Kamala Harris shared with the claim that she called young voters “stupid” has spread on social media after the California senator was chosen as the Democratic Party’s vice presidential nominee. The claim is misleading; in th
Full Fact→ Flu isn’t the underlying cause of death for more people than Covid-19
“Flu killing six times more people than coronavirus” The Mirror, 19 August 2020 “FLU has killed more people in the UK than coronavirus for eight weeks in a row” The Sun, 19 August 2020 “In the week to the end of July, fiv
The Dispatch→ Did Barack Obama Mock the Flint Water Crisis?
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Poynter→ Automated fact-checking can catch claims that slip past human checkers. Here are the two ways they work.
From false claims that drinking warm water with lemon protects against the coronavirus to high contamination rates among NATO troops based in Latvia, the pandemic has been ripe for many kinds of hoaxes and disinformation campaigns. Between January and
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Dems Strike ‘Under God’ from the Pledge of Allegiance at the 2020 DNC?
On August 19 2020, a screenshot of a Fox News chyron asserting that Democrats had removed “under God” from the Pledge of Allegiance began circulating on social media: We encountered the Fox News chyron in image-only form; it read: DEMS ST
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: ‘Plandemic – Indoctornation’ Video Contains Several False And Misleading Claims
Does the video "Plandemic - Indoctornation" by Mikki Willis released in August 2020 reveal new facts about the COVID-19 epidemic? No, that's not true: the video repeats the unsubstantiated claim this virus is man-made, edits together unre
Truth or Fiction?→ Do Images Show Joe Biden and Kamala Harris Announcing Their Ticket at an Event — Without Masks?
On August 15 2020, four days after Joe Biden announced that former California attorney general Kamala Harris would be his running mate in the upcoming presidential election, the following images began circulating — purportedly showing Biden and
Truth or Fiction?→ Is This a Photo of Seattle — Brought to You By ‘The Environmental Left’?
On August 10 2020, a Facebook user shared the following picture, purportedly taken in Seattle the previous month and showing detritus left behind by the “environmental left”: Alongside a blurry image of a trash-filled street, the
The Dispatch→ Is a ‘Shadow Government’ Seeking a Coup Against President Trump?
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Truth or Fiction?→ Did Mozart Write a Song Called ‘Lick My Ass’?
In August 2020 a Facebook screenshot of a tweet contrasted a moral panic over Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s “WAP” with a claim that classical composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wrote a song called “Lick My Ass”: A sc
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: NO Proof That Government Contractors Played A Role In Carrying Out A ‘Coup Against President Trump’
Did government contractors play a role in carrying out a "coup against President Trump" as claimed in the "ShadowGate" video? No, that's not true: There's zero evidence to support the claim, a variation on the oft-debunked myth that Trump
Full Fact→ Viral Facebook post compares the national living wage with the state pension
“The government minimum wage so that people can live reasonably is £8.72 an hour x 36hrs equals £314.00 x 4 weeks equals £1,256.00 per month x 12 months equals £15070.00 per year. Why is it that pensioners who have paid h
FactCheck.org→ Democratic Convention Opening Night
Summary Our major finding from the first night of the four-day 2020 Democratic National Convention is that it wasn’t accurate to call it a “convention” at all. That word means “coming together,” and Democratic delegates stayed apart because o
Truth or Fiction?→ Was a New Strain of Coronavirus Known as D614G and ‘Ten Times More Infectious’ Emerge in Malaysia in August 2020?
On August 16 2020, a number of anxiety-provoking tweets discussed the purported discovery of a new strain of SARS-CoV-2 (D614G), described as “ten times more infectious” after mutating: The highly infectious Covid-19 mutation, known as
Health Feedback→ Flawed “study” incorrectly claims that countries adopting hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19 experienced reduced mortality rates
REVIEW On 5 August 2020, an “analysis” comparing COVID-19 mortality rates in countries with different practices regarding the use of hydroxychloroquine to treat the disease started circulating in social media posts on Facebook and Twitter. In th
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: The CDC Did NOT Predict An Outbreak Of AFM Cases To Cover Up Anticipated Future Vaccine Injuries
Did the CDC predict an outbreak of AFM (acute flaccid myelitis) cases to cover up anticipated future vaccine injuries from the COVID-19 vaccine and flu shot? No, that's not true: The CDC has been tracking AFM cases since 2014. AF
FactCheck.org→ Biden’s Greatest Hits
As the Democratic National Convention kicks off today, we thought it would be helpful to highlight some of the claims we have fact-checked from presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden over the course of the campaign so far. For more on each statement,