Does a chart show real data of the drop-off in far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) bot activity since Ukraine bombed several Russian data centers? No, that's not true: This chart shows a prediction of the future, not a factual graph of what had already happened. The line graph, shared without sourcing on Oct. 11, 2026, shows a line going all…
Does a real photo show then-President George W. Bush, then-Vice President Dick Cheney, then-Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Osama bin Laden sitting together? No, that's not true: The image is an edited version of a photo taken at the Pentagon on Sept. 12, 2001, the day after the 9/11 attacks. Osama bin Laden was edited into the original photo,…
Was a post about how the Nobel Peace Prize committee rejected Trump's bid written by a Nobel committee member? No, that's not true: The author, Peter Girnus, is not listed among the five members of the 2026 Norwegian Nobel Committee. He is a social media content creator who describes himself as a "satirist." His posts typically use a boastful style,…
Did 'Task & Purpose' publish an article implying that 'Sarah Miller' was appointed the 'first executioner' in the Nidal Hasan's case? No, that's not true: Neither the outlet's website nor its social media accounts contained such a story. The soldier pictured in the fake screenshot is actually Sgt. Samantha Wendt, a canine handler whose photos appear on a U.S. government…
Is time-stamped surveillance camera footage from James Talarico's house real? No, that's not true: The image is AI-generated, according to analysis by online detection tools. One tool assessed the image as 99.9% "Likely to be AI-generated," while another indicated it was created using OpenAI tools. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) by the @RheinAmacher account on X on…
Is there evidence Jared Kushner, a businessman, U.S. special envoy for peace and President Donald Trump's son-in-law, was one of the people who recently bought .si domain names? No, that's not true: there is no evidence that Kushner recently acquired any .si domain names, which use Slovenia's country-code top-level domain. Affinity Partners, Kushner's investment firm, told Lead Stories that "Jared…
Does a viral picture actually document a real-life event during which U.S. servicemembers shot "reptilians"? No, that's not true: Three online tools said that the image was AI-generated. Available government sources do not support the idea of such an encounter ever taking place. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) on X where it was published on Oct. 10,…
Did President Donald Trump's Truth Social account post a 503 "Service Unavailable" error referencing Yandex? No, that's not true: A review of Trump's Truth Social account found no record of the post, and no established news outlets reported that his account shared the error message at the time of publication. The fake post appeared to have originated from a political…
Did "The Simpsons" predict that President Donald Trump would take a picture with a glowing orb? No, that's not true: The image is from a short posted to the official Facebook account of "The Simpsons" after the real picture of Trump was taken. This "prediction" has been debunked since 2017. The claim was made in a post (archived here) by…
Do real photos show Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wearing a bunny costume or an off-the-shoulder cocktail dress? No, that's not true: Hive Moderation found all of the images highly likely to be AI-generated. Searches with Google Lens did not find any copies of these images originating from a verified source. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) by the @cryptocyberia…
Did "South Park" tease an episode featuring Susan Dell and did she rage in response? No, that's not true: The image of Dell appearing with the characters from the TV show is AI-generated and was made by a digital creator. Neither the show nor Dell had posted any messages about such an episode at the time of writing. The claim…
Was an email to Jeffrey Epstein in the Epstein files ending in "Love ya" written by Marco Rubio? No, that's not true: There is no evidence that Rubio wrote the email, whose "From" field and signature section are redacted. No authentic photos or official records link Rubio to the Epstein files or establish an association between him and Epstein. The…
Does a recording released on social media prove Texas Senate candidate James Talarico was treated at an Ohio mental health facility? Here is what we know: The facility released a statement saying that Talarico "has never received treatment from Lindner Center of Hope." Talarico posted a message on X saying that he has never been to Ohio. Talarico's campaign released…
Does a real video show the moment a Houthi missile hit a Saudia airliner parked near an airport terminal in Riyadh? No, that's not true: A Saudia airliner really was destroyed in attacks at the King Khalid International Airport on Oct. 8, 2026, but the footage of the missile blowing the plane apart is fabricated. Real photos and videos do…
Does a video show a Muslim passenger being removed from a Southwest Airlines plane after threatening to blow up a Nashville-to-Fort Lauderdale flight in early October 2026? No, that's not true: The video is from more than seven months earlier, on March 6, 2026, when the flight was diverted to Atlanta to "respond to a possible security matter," which was…
Have you seen viral videos showing astonishing "stunt running" up steep ramps, which sometimes end with impossible jumps? Lead Stories has spotted a number of such videos recently and has found that many of them were created using artificial intelligence, probably as clickbait. The word "parkour" that appeared in many descriptions of such clips is a real athletic discipline, but…
Is a video that shows Princess Leonor of Spain wearing a yellow mini dress real? No, that's not true: An online detection tool rated the video as 99.9% likely generated by AI. The fake video appears to have been created by manipulating real footage filmed during a July 2024 event when the Spanish national football team met with the royal…
Does a video show a real instance of a woman rescuing a white baby reindeer on the side of the road? No, that's not true: The account that first shared the video labeled it as AI content, and Meta flagged it as well. A visual analysis found physical impossibilities -- including antlers passing through a person's body. The claim appeared…
Did Iranian officials say they would release audio of President Donald Trump begging them to open the Strait of Hormuz so gas prices will go down before the midterms? No, that's not true: This story originated from The Halfway Post, an account which says their content is "Halfway true comedy and satire for your doomscrolling". A search of both Google…
Did Bellingcat produce an investigation and video stating that German Chancellor Friedrich Merz was receiving 25% of each financial aid package going to Ukraine? No, that's not true: The organization's website showed no such report. Lead Stories didn't find any other investigations by established media organizations saying that one-quarter of each financial aid package for Ukraine went to Merz. The…
