Didion's publisher Penguin Random House announced the author's death on Thursday.
Health Feedback→ Joe Rogan interview with Peter McCullough contains multiple false and unsubstantiated claims about the COVID-19 pandemic and vaccines
REVIEW The Joe Rogan Experience, a podcast hosted by actor and comedian Joe Rogan, interviewed cardiologist Peter McCullough in December 2021. During the interview, which spanned about two hours and 45 minutes, McCullough made multiple inaccurate, m
Snopes→ Was a Giant, 14-Pound Possum Killed in Minnesota?
There might be some forced perspective at work here, but this is still one giant possum.
Snopes→ Trump Asks Supreme Court to Block Release of Documents
Former President Donald Trump turned to the Supreme Court in a last-ditch effort to keep documents away from the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: NO Evidence That Hydroxychloroquine Decalcifies The Pineal Gland
Does hydroxychloroquine decalcify the pineal gland? No, there's no evidence to substantiate that: The anti-parasitic and immunosuppressive drug is approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat or prevent malaria. It's also prescri
Snopes→ ‘Unabomber’ Ted Kaczynski Moved to Prison Medical Facility
A Bureau of Prison spokesperson declined to disclose any details of Kaczynski's medical condition or the reason for his transfer.
PolitiFact→ Tweets – Twitter post misconstrues what WHO Director-General said about COVID-19 vaccines and children
“WHO Director-General: The vaccines are being used to kill children.”
Snopes→ Did People Refer to Gaslighting During the Era of ‘I Love Lucy’?
A stray piece of dialogue from the 2021 biopic "Being the Ricardos" set off a fascinating online debate about a cultural anachronism.
PolitiFact→ Facebook posts – Fentanyl deaths spike, but Facebook post overstates by how much
“More people, aged 18-45, died of Fentanyl overdoses in 2020 than covid, car accidents, cancer, + suicide combined.”
Snopes→ Kim Potter Guilty of Manslaughter in Daunte Wright Death
Jurors convicted a suburban Minneapolis police officer of two manslaughter charges in the killing of Daunte Wright, a Black motorist she shot during a traffic stop after she said she confused her gun for her Taser.
Truth or Fiction?→ ‘Macaulay Culkin is Now 4 Years Older than Catherine O’Hara Was When She Played His Mom in Home Alone’
In December 2021, screenshots of a tweet indicating that former child actor Macaulay Culkin was “now” four years older that Catherine O’Hara when Home Alone was filmed began circulating among Facebook users: In the screenshot, the T
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: WHO Director-General Did NOT Say Countries Are Giving COVID-19 Booster Shots To Kill Children
Did the director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus say that countries are administering COVID-19 booster shots to "kill children"? No, that's not true: A WHO spokesperson told Lead Stories that Gheb
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: 10,000 Medical Experts Did NOT Start Nuremberg 2 Trial Against World Leaders for Crimes Against Humanity
Did a team of 1,000 lawyers and 10,000 medical experts start a second Nuremberg trial against world leaders and public health organizations for pandemic-related crimes against humanity? No, that's not true: Spokespersons for the Centers f
Snopes→ UK Data Suggest Hospitalization is Less Likely with Omicron
Preliminary data suggest that people with the omicron variant of the coronavirus are between 50% and 70% less likely to need hospitalization than those with the delta strain.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Bee Sting To Penis CANNOT Permanently Enlarge It — Post Is From A Humor Site
Can a bee sting to the penis permanently enlarge it? No, that's not true: The story was originally put out in November 2019 (archived here) by a South African satire website named Ihlaya News that previously disguised itself as news and g
Full Fact→ How many Covid-19 patients in ICU are unvaccinated?
We’ve seen several reports over the past month claiming “almost all” Covid-19 patients in intensive care units (ICUs) are unvaccinated. While this used to be true, some of these claims were made when up to date figures were not availa
Snopes→ Did Trump Praise COVID-19 Vaccines?
The former president reportedly called the vaccines one of mankind's greatest achievements.
Snopes→ Yuengling Accuses Bud Light of Trampling on Trademark
A trademark tiff between America’s oldest beer maker and America's best-selling beer brand appears to be over before it really began.
PolitiFact→ Peter McCollough – Benefits from COVID-19 vaccines far outweigh the risks for teens
Teens are “more likely to be hospitalized with myocarditis” from the COVID-19 vaccines than to be “hospitalized with COVID.”
Full Fact→ Data likely overstates the number of house hunters per house
Analysis by an estate agent membership organisation claims that in November 2021 there were 29 house buyers for each property in the UK. The findings, published in a report by Propertymark, was picked up by the Press Association, the Daily Telegraph ne
PolitiFact→ An enduring tradition: False claims about attacks on Christmas
Pants on Fire claims about attacks on Christmas have become their own holiday tradition.
Snopes→ NHL Announces Players Won’t Be Allowed to Go to Olympics
A rash of positive COVID-19 test results caused several teams to shut down and the list of postponed games ballooned to 50.
Full Fact→ Priti Patel’s tweet on police funding doesn’t account for inflation
Both the Home Secretary Priti Patel and the official Home Office Twitter account recently tweeted a graph showing what appears to be a significant increase in police funding from 2015/16 to 2022/23, alongside an announcement that funding would increase
PolitiFact→ Facebook posts – Fact-checking the state of endangered animals, extinctions
"Polar bears have increased 400% in 45 years; whales are nearly fully recovered; extinctions are down 90% past century. Koalas are doing fine. If we could ban wind turbines we could save 85,000 birds of prey/yr in US alone."
Snopes→ US Rep. Scanlon’s Carjacked Vehicle Found; 5 in Custody
Scanlon's blue Acura MDX was located in Newark, Delaware, about 45 miles (74 kilometers) from Philadelphia.
Logically→ WHO director-general said countries are giving COVID-19 booster shots to kill children.
Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stumbled on his words and corrected himself. The clip was edited to misrepresent what he said.
Logically→ Applying fruit juice to a lateral flow test can generate a positive result. This shows that lateral flow tests are unreliable.
Applying fruit juice to a lateral flow test breaks the lateral flow test. Lateral flow tests play an important role in the fight against COVID-19.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: NO Evidence That Garlic Relieves ‘Pain In Ears’ — Doctor Says It Might Make Ear Infections Worse
Does garlic relieve "pain in ears"? No, there's no evidence to substantiate that claim: An ear, nose and throat (ENT) physician with the University of Kansas Health System tells Lead Stories, "While some garlic extracts possess antimicrob
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Military Did NOT Convict George W. Bush In Tribunal
Was former U.S. President George W. Bush convicted of treason and murder on December 16, 2021, by a three-officer military commission? No, that's not true: Lead Stories has repeatedly debunked claims from Real Raw News, a satirical news w
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Cherry-Picked Snippet Of CNN’s Dr. Leana Wen Does NOT Accurately Convey Her Advice About Masks As COVID-19 Protection
Did CNN medical analyst Dr. Leana Wen say, "Don't wear a cloth mask. Cloth masks are little more than facial decorations"? Yes, she did say that when speaking about the possibility of New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio canceling the New Y
FactCheck.org→ Early Data on Omicron
As many Americans and others around the globe prepare for holiday travel and get-togethers, the omicron variant continues to be a concern. While the available data on transmission, vaccine effectiveness and severity of disease are still preliminary, he
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Female Afghan Pilot Was NOT Stoned To Death In Public — She’s Alive And In The US
Was a female Afghan pilot stoned to death in public? No, that's not true: The reports that claimed Afghanistan's second woman pilot, Safia Ferozi, was stoned to death by the Taliban came with a photograph of a different woman who was lync
FactCheck.org→ Increase in COVID-19 VAERS Reports Due To Reporting Requirements, Intense Scrutiny of Widely Given Vaccines
SciCheck Digest Expanded reporting requirements and intense scrutiny of the hundreds of millions administered COVID-19 vaccine doses have driven record reporting of potential side effects to one of the government’s vaccine safety monitoring systems.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Chef Jamie Oliver Did NOT Beat McDonald’s In Legal Battle Over Processed Beef — Not Used By McDonald’s Since 2011
Did McDonald's lose a legal battle with chef Jamie Oliver? Was it proven that lean finely textured beef treated with ammonium hydroxide was highly toxic or not fit for human consumption? No, neither are true: Oliver did not win a legal b
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Devils Tower Is NOT A Giant Silicon Tree Trunk — It’s A Rock Formed 50 Million Years Ago
Is Devils Tower National Monument in Wyoming a remnant of an ancient giant tree made out of silicon? No, that's not true: Devils Tower is sedimentary rock that got pushed up to the surface millions of years ago. The National Park Service
PolitiFact→ Club for Growth – Did Pat McCrory support Black Lives Matter protests and condemn ‘Trump supporters?’
Audio clips from ad show Pat McCrory supported Black Lives Matter protesters while condemning ‘Trump supporters’
Snopes→ Did the FBI Once Deem ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ Communist Propaganda?
Another fascinating chapter in the history of an American holiday classic.
Lead Stories→ Fact Check: Statistic Does NOT Paint Complete Picture Of Risks Associated With COVID-19, Vaccines
Does the claim that one in 100 vaccinated individuals were admitted to the hospital or died with heart issues tell the whole story? No, that's not true: The claim is based on a study that concluded the absolute risk of myocarditis -- infl
Snopes→ US Probes Potential of Drivers Playing Video Games in Teslas
The U.S. has opened a formal investigation into the potential for Tesla drivers to play video games on a center touch screen while the vehicle is in motion.
Snopes→ Pause on Student Loan Payments is Extended Through May 1
The Biden administration extended a student loan moratorium that has allowed tens of millions of Americans to put off debt payments during the pandemic.