Originally published by OffGuardian, this article makes numerous claims about the COVID-19 pandemic that have been republished in other outlets such as GlobalResearch.ca and Australian National Review, both of which have been described as conspiracy we
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Lead Stories→ Fact Check: U.S. Birth Certificates Are NOT Federal Bank Notes Valued Between $650,000 to $750,000
Are U.S. birth certificates federal bank notes valued between $650,000 to $750,000? No, that's not true: It is an old myth that has been disputed by the U.S. Treasury Department. Some people who tried to cash in on birth certificates were crim
Truth or Fiction?→ Is a Texas Doctor Curing COVID-19 Patients For $50?
A Texas doctor’s claim that he has cured more than 75 patients for COVID-19 for no more than $50 spread widely around Facebook and YouTube before apparently being removed from both platforms. Dr. Brian Procter first drew attention through a phot
Health Feedback→ Nasal swab used for COVID-19 testing does not reach the brain
REVIEW A Facebook post shared more than 16,000 times claims that the nasopharyngeal swab (nasal swab), which is widely used to collect biological samples for testing for active SARS-CoV-2 infection (the virus responsible for COVID-19), scrapes and d
FactCheck.org→ Post Falsely Attributes Racist Remarks to Fashion Designer
Quick Take A viral image on Facebook falsely attributes racist comments to the fashion designer Michael Kors. The quotes were fabricated by a now-defunct satirical website in 2015, but have been circulating as if true ever since. Full Story An old
Full Fact→ Did the government meet its Covid-19 test targets?
At the time of writing, 11.5 million tests for Covid-19 have been carried out or posted in the UK. Since March, the government has invited the country to judge its progress on these tests by announcing measurable targets. We have written about so
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘New Cases, Yesterday: Germany: 298, Denmark: 10, Norway: 11, Sweden: 57 — United States: 55,442’
On July 8 2020, Twitter user Brian Klass shared the following post in response to President Trump’s tweets about reopening American schools — purportedly demonstrating the number of new cases on July 7 2020 in the United States and four Eu
FactCheck.org→ Navarro Doesn’t Give Full Picture On Hydroxychloroquine
White House trade adviser Peter Navarro has promoted the “astonishing” results of an observational study that found hydroxychloroquine was associated with lower mortality for patients hospitalized for COVID-19. But the study has limitations, and mu
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: CDC Testing Kits For COVID-19 NEVER Risked Lives
Were people tested for COVID-19 exposed to the coronavirus due to contaminated tests? No, that's not true: Federal officials did send out defective tests in February -- one month into the pandemic in the United States and about six months befo
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: That Heart-Wrenching Photo You ‘Need’ To Share Is Likely A Malware Scam
Did no one want to share the birthday photo of this grandmother on her 120th birthday? Or the one of that baby with the handicap? Or the dead mother? No, that's not true: these kinds of deceptive stories are often a ruse with the sole purpose
Truth or Fiction?→ Why Is the Coronavirus Test So Invasive? Would a Cheek Swab Work?
On July 7 2020, Facebook user David D Smith shared the following post, questioning why coronavirus testing was so invasive, particularly when compared to DNA test cheek swabs: Smith included a shiver-inducing image but no citations, writing:
Full Fact→ New data reveals PM’s testing speeds claims as wrong
“We already turn around 90% of tests within 48 hours. The tests conducted at the 199 testing centres, as well as the mobile test centres, are all done within 24 hours, and I can undertake to him now to get all tests turned around in 24 hours by
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Doctor’s Claim That ‘No One Has Died From The Coronavirus’ In Europe Is NOT True
Is it true that nobody has actually died from COVID-19 across Europe, and that officials there have identified no antibodies specific to the disease? Also, is it true that there is no pandemic, but merely an "infection"? No, none of this is tr
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Ghislaine Maxwell Was Arrested by the FBI, Can We Talk About How Similar She Looks to Madeleine McCann’s Female Abductor Sketch’?
On July 3 2020, just after British socialite Ghislane Maxwell was arrested, the Facebook page “NightMerica Podcast” shared the following post, comparing her photograph with a purported sketch of “Madeleine McCann’s female abdu
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Carsyn Davis Die After Attending a ‘COVID Party’?
In early July 2020, news of the death of Florida teenager Carsyn Leigh Davis began spreading on social media — alongside rumors the girl, who was purportedly medically fragile, was intentionally exposed to SARS-CoV-2 by her mother: A parent se
FactCheck.org→ Americans for Prosperity
Political leanings: Conservative/Libertarian 2018 total spending: $10 million for the super PAC alone Americans for Prosperity, a “social welfare” organization, along with Americans for Prosperity Action, a super PAC, and Americans for Pros
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Daughter of MLK and Coretta Scott King Posted This Advice as the Next Six Months are Going to Get Real’
In July 2020, a short post of advice bullet points attributed to Bernice King (daughter of Coretta Scott King and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.) began circulating, reading as follows: Daughter of MLK and Coretta Scott King posted this advice, as the nex
Truth or Fiction?→ LAPD ‘14188’ Badge Number Controversy
On July 3 2020, Twitter user Hayes Davenport shared a screenshot of a purported Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) example badge web page, featuring a badge with the number 14188: Unfortunate sample badge number choice in my opinion pic.twitter.co
FactCheck.org→ Trump’s False Claim on Coronavirus Harm
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that through May 30, 14% of confirmed coronavirus cases led to hospitalizations — including 2% in intensive care units. But President Donald Trump falsely claimed “99%” of cases
Climate Feedback→ Article by Michael Shellenberger mixes accurate and inaccurate claims in support of a misleading and overly simplistic argumentation about climate change
SUMMARY The article by Michael Shellenberger was published in various media outlets, including Forbes, Zero Hedge, Breitbart, PJ Media, The Daily Wire, The Australian, and Quillette. The article has been shared more than 200,000 times on social medi
Full Fact→ Coronavirus cures: debunked
Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, readers have been asking us whether alleged cures or treatments for the coronavirus are real or not. It’s important to note that, currently, there is no approved vaccine for Covid-19. In the UK only
Full Fact→ Covid-19 testing is not as fast as Matt Hancock claimed
“Really proud of my amazing testing team who’ve delivered 24-hr turnaround times of: - 98% for drive through testing - 97% for mobile testing units” Matt Hancock, 2 July 2020 The secretary of state for health and social care, Matt H
Health Feedback→ Internet memes based on hearsay claim that hospital laboratories falsify COVID-19 tests to inflate numbers without evidence
REVIEW This Facebook meme posted on 27 June 2020, claims that a San Francisco hospital lab intentionally falsified COVID-19 tests to inflate the number of positive results. Robert Tayman tweeted on 29 June a viral version of this claim and afterward
AFP Fact Check→ Health experts say there is no evidence that drinking cold water harms human health
Multiple Facebook and Twitter posts shared tens of thousands of times claim drinking cold water will disturb internal organ function and make your body “work harder than necessary.” The posts credit “Japanese health specialists,” a medical
Full Fact→ We all deserve a better debate on poverty
What's happening to poverty in the UK is one of the big questions facing the country. It is essential for governments and political leaders to make informed decisions about policy responses and for the public to understand the communities they live in.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Doctors On TV DO Recommend Vitamins and Sunlight For People’s Health, But Also Advise Vaccines
Is it true that no doctor on television advises people to boost their immune system with vitamins and natural light, instead only pushing vaccines and drugs? No, that's not true. Plenty of coverage, including guidance from the Centers for Dise
Full Fact→ What was the New Deal?
Franklin Delano Roosevelt is having quite a moment. At the weekend, Michael Gove heaped praise on the 33rd US President who, he claimed, “managed to save capitalism.” On Monday the Prime Minister called for a “Rooseveltian approach to
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: ‘Covid911 – Insurgency’ Video Pushes Several Falsehoods And Unproven Conspiracy Theories
Is the COVID-19 pandemic a conspiracy manufactured by "Deep State Democrats" and the "mass media" to disrupt, even rig, the upcoming presidential election in a bid to topple Donald Trump? And did the coronavirus provide the perfect cover for t
Full Fact→ This is what we know about the government loan to pay slave owners compensation after slavery was abolished in 1833
In the last few weeks, following Black Lives Matter protests, Britain’s history of slave trading and ownership has been at the fore of public discussion. Statues of former slave traders have been removed and forcibly toppled and various claims ab
Poynter→ Infrared thermometers won’t blind you, damage your neurons nor affect your meditation
People who have recently tried to resume their lives by leaving home and going to shops and restaurants have probably stopped at some temperature check control system. Usually, someone with an infrared thermometer in hand points the machine-looking too
Full Fact→ How medical staff found themselves at the centre of an information battle during the pandemic
Over the past months, as the coronavirus pandemic gripped the country, medical staff have found themselves – often unwillingly – at the centre of a parallel information crisis. Throughout the pandemic, there have been numerous posts that at
Full Fact→ We know of no successful convictions of a police officer for the killing of someone in police custody since 1971
“The last time a police officer was successfully prosecuted in the UK concerning the death of somebody in custody was in 1969.” The Guardian, 4 June 2020 We’ve found no evidence that any serving police officer has been successfully
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Members of Congress Do NOT Receive Full-Pay Retirement After Serving One Term
Do members of Congress receive a full-pay retirement after serving one term? No, that's not true. Regardless of length of service, federal law limits the starting payout to a member of Congress to no more than 80% of his or her final salary. U
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘The Golden Girls’ Blackface Controversy
On June 28 2020, Facebook user Matt Joseph shared the following post, which showed a BuzzFeed article (“An Episode Of “The Golden Girls” Was Pulled From Hulu For Featuring Blackface”) and a comment about how the decision was co
Full Fact→ Viral illustration shows one type of Covid-19 sampling method
We’ve seen a number of posts on Facebook and Twitter claiming to show an illustration of how a sample for a Covid-19 test is taken. This is how far back we have to put the swab to test you for #COVID19. You might want to follow medical recommend
Health Feedback→ Contrary to popular claim on social media, RNA vaccines do not alter our DNA
SUMMARY A claim that RNA vaccine technology, which is being used to develop a COVID-19 vaccine candidate, will “permanently alter your DNA” was published in an article by Waking Times in May 2020, forming the basis for many viral posts on social
Full Fact→ What do we know about Covid-19 inequalities among people from minority ethnic groups?
In the early stages of the coronavirus epidemic in the UK, and in the absence of data splitting out Covid-19 deaths by ethnicity, reports of health workers from minority ethnicities dying of Covid-19 was the first clue that some groups of people might
Full Fact→ There is no evidence that suicides have increased 200% under lockdown
Numerous prominent Twitter users have claimed that suicides have supposedly increased 200% under lockdown. However, we can find no evidence at the time of writing to support this claim. It is unclear where this statistic has come from, or how the
FactCheck.org→ Trump Falsely Claims Obama ‘Destroyed’ Maine Lobster Industry
In a June 24 tweet, President Donald Trump falsely claimed that his predecessor had “destroyed” Maine’s lobster and fishing industry. It is true that, in an effort to protect a rich but delicate marine area, then-President Barack Oba
FactCheck.org→ Biden Floats Baseless Election Conspiracy
Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, claimed without evidence that President Donald Trump “wants to cut off money for the post office so they cannot deliver mail-in ballots.” The perpetually cash-strapped U.S. Postal