On December 7 and 8 2021, a Newsmax “Vlad the Great” cover photograph circulated on social media platforms like Imgur and Twitter: For anyone who thinks Newsmax is anything but Russian disinformation, here is the cover of Newsmax Magazine
Logically→ Thomas Hughes, the killer of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes, has been attacked in prison.
The Ministry of Justice denied all reports of a physical assault on Thomas Hughes behind bars.
Snopes→ Museum to Fix ‘Ripples’ in Rembrandt’s ‘Night Watch’
Rembrandt van Rijn's iconic painting “The Night Watch” will be restretched to get rid of deformations in its top left corner.
PolitiFact→ Facebook posts – Many reporters are covering the Ghislaine Maxwell trial, despite claims otherwise
“There’s only one reporter on site” at the Ghislaine Maxwell trial.
Full Fact→ Do police normally investigate things that happened a year ago?
The police don't normally look back and investigate things that have taken place a year ago. Dominic Raab MP, 5 December 2021. A clip of justice secretary Dominic Raab appearing on the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show has been widely shared online after M
Full Fact→ Lionel Shriver is wrong to say that Covid-19 vaccines can’t stop the virus spreading
[Vaccination] reduces death and hospitalisation, but can’t stop Covid from spreading. Lionel Shriver, 20 November 2021. The novelist Lionel Shriver misrepresented the evidence about Covid-19 vaccines in a column for the Spectator on 20 November
Full Fact→ Lorraine Kelly and her guests were wrong about Covid-19 patients
90% of people in hospital are unvaccinated right now with Covid. Dr Hilary Jones, 6 December 2021. 90% of people in hospital [with Covid] have not been vaccinated. Lorraine Kelly, 6 December 2021. 90% of the people that are in hospital [with Covid]
Snopes→ Did Trump Say ‘If You’re Innocent, Why Are You Taking the Fifth Amendment?’
Trump has offered conflicting opinions of the Fifth Amendment over the years.
Snopes→ QAnon Group Holed Up in Dallas Awaits Trump and JFK’s Return (Still)
Some are calling the group in Dallas a cult.
Snopes→ New York City Poised to Give Voting Rights to Noncitizens
New York City, long a beacon for immigrants, is on the cusp of becoming the largest places in the country to give noncitizens the right to vote in local elections.
Health Feedback→ No, a fence in a shopping mall wasn’t used to segregate vaccinated and unvaccinated people; photo was taken in Romania, not Germany
REVIEW A Facebook post published by the political activist group Young Americans for Liberty claimed that a photo showed a fence being used to separate vaccinated and unvaccinated shoppers in Germany. That post received more than 4,600 engagements f
Full Fact→ Father of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes has not been attacked in prison
A number of Facebook posts, including one with over 90,000 shares, claim that Thomas Hughes has been attacked in prison and is in “critical condition”. Hughes was recently jailed for 21 years and his partner, Emma Tustin, was jailed for a m
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Merriam-Webster Did NOT Change Definition Of ‘Anti-Vaxxer’ To Include Section About Mandates — It Was Already There
Did Merriam-Webster change the definition of "anti-vaxxer" during the COVID-19 pandemic to include a section about opposing vaccine mandates? No, that's not true: The section discussing opposition to vaccine mandates has been included in
PolitiFact→ Facebook posts – No, Trump wasn’t inaugurated president in 2021
“Trump was secretly inaugurated as president of the restored Republic.”
AllSides→ Post Makes Unfounded Claims About Omicron ‘Symptoms’ and COVID-19 Vaccines
https://www.factcheck.org/2021/12/scicheck-post-makes-unfounded-claims-about-omicron-symptoms-and-covid-19-vaccines/
PolitiFact→ Viral image – No, this isn’t a photo of a German mall separating vaccinated and unvaccinated shoppers
Photo shows “a German mall separating the vaccinated and unvaccinated.”
Logically→ COVID-19 vaccines are weakening immune systems.
Vaccines do not weaken immune systems.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Picture Does NOT Show A German Mall Fencing Off The Unvaccinated — Latvian Mall Fences Outlets By ‘Epidemiological Conditions’
Does a Facebook post show a German shopping mall separating vaccinated shoppers from the unvaccinated ones, using a temporary barrier that looks like a fence? No, that's not true: The mall is not in Germany but Riga, the capital of Latvia
PolitiFact→ Facebook posts – A claim that viruses and other pathogens always evolve to become less lethal is false
"Pathogens evolve to become less, not more, virulent over time” because otherwise, “they’d destroy their hosts which they depend on to live.”
Snopes→ Congressional Leaders Reach Deal to Hike Debt Limit
Congressional leaders reached an elaborate deal that will allow Democrats to lift the nation’s debt limit without any votes from Republicans, likely averting another last-minute rush to avoid a federal default.
AllSides→ Stacey Abrams Says She ‘Did Not Challenge’ Georgia Election Outcome
https://freebeacon.com/democrats/fact-check-stacey-abrams-says-she-did-not-challenge-georgia-election-outcome/
AllSides→ How many newly elected officials and Congressional candidates were ‘involved’ in the Capitol riot?
https://www.politifact.com/article/2021/dec/03/how-many-newly-elected-officials-and-congressional/ A Po
AllSides→ Was Ghislaine Maxwell at Chelsea Clinton’s Wedding?
https://factcheck.thedispatch.com/p/was-ghislaine-maxwell-at-chelsea With Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial c
Full Fact→ Pfizer vaccine doesn’t have a 6% fatality rate
Claims that the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine has a one in 17 mortality rate have been spreading on social media. This is false, and is due to a misreading of a report from Pfizer on adverse reactions. When Full Fact asked Pfizer to authenticate the report,
Logically→ The U.K. has 850,000 registered child sex offenders.
The number of registered sex offenders in the U.K is not as high as 850,000. This was a top-end estimate of people who pose a risk to children.
Snopes→ Pfizer Says COVID Booster Offers Protection Against Omicron
Pfizer and its partner BioNTech said lab tests showed a booster dose increased by 25-fold the level of so-called neutralizing antibodies against omicron.
Logically→ Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine has a mortality rate of nearly 6 percent.
The graph provides data on adverse events, not considering underlying conditions. Studies show adverse reactions to the vaccine is extremely rare.
Poynter→ That viral Christmas card of former President Donald Trump isn’t really his card
People are decking their social media feeds with a viral Christmas card of former President Donald Trump. The card, shared in a Facebook post, shows an image of Trump dressed in […] The post That viral Christmas card of former President Donald T
Washington Post→ Baldwin says he never pulled the trigger. Experts are skeptical.
Gun experts have said Baldwin's explanation is "not plausible" and "improbable."
Snopes→ Tennessee Football Appears to Post ‘F*ck. Theo. Cade.’
"Little disappointed to see Theo Cade not on the top trending tweet topics," a Twitter user commented.
PolitiFact→ Facebook posts – Viruses and other pathogens can evolve to become more lethal over time
"Pathogens evolve to become less, not more, virulent over time” because otherwise, “they’d destroy their hosts which they depend on to live.”
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: European Union Chief Does NOT Call For Throwing Out Nuremberg Code (Which Is Not A Statute)
Did the head of the EU Commission call for throwing out the Nuremberg Code? No, that's not true: Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission (EC), said at a December 1, 2021, news conference that it is time to consider
Snopes→ Beware of ‘$3,600 Stimulus for Homeowners’ Facebook Scam
It might not be a good sign when the bottom of a brand new website displays a list of "disclaimers" in small print addressed to "Facebook reviewers and 3rd party fact checkers."
FactCheck.org→ Post Makes Unfounded Claims About Omicron ‘Symptoms’ and COVID-19 Vaccines
SciCheck Digest Scientists are still learning about the omicron variant’s ability to spread or cause severe illness and the effectiveness of the current COVID-19 vaccines in fighting it. But a Facebook post misleadingly claims to list seven ̶
Snopes→ No, ‘Let’s Go Brandon’ Is Not a Code Used by Pedophiles Online
A widely-shared meme appeared to be a distasteful prank at the expense of right-leaning critics of President Joe Biden.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Chris Cuomo Did NOT ‘Elude Military Capture,’ There Was No Dragnet
Did journalist Chris Cuomo elude military capture in December of 2021? No, that's not true: It is not possible, as the Posse Comitatus Act outlaws military interference in civilian legal affairs. Also, the claim was posted on a self-descr
PolitiFact→ Instagram posts – European leader did not say the Nuremberg Code should be disregarded
“SHOCKING: In the wake of Austria’s drastic lockdown of unvaccinated people, EU chief calls for throwing out Nuremberg Code.”
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Austrian Protests Against ‘Health Dictatorship’ Are NOT Accurately Represented With Captions And Photos In Online Posts
Does this collection of images and this caption accurately portray protests against Austrian COVID-19 mandates between November and December of 2021, in the capital of Vienna? No, that's not true: Online reverse image searches reveal that
Snopes→ No, PETA is Not Selling Garments Made of Human Skin
The animal rights organization made a statement that’s more than skin deep.
Snopes→ Does Video Show CEO of BioNTech Refusing To Take COVID-19 Vaccine?
This is what happens when conspiracy theorists play madlibs.