Is Dr. Anthony Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and former chief medical advisor to President Joe Biden, facing imminent arrest for lying to Congress? No, that's not true: The allegation is part of a followbait or clickbait scheme. In a typical bait-and-switch move, the poster of this claim promises social media users a…

Does a short video show in reality a lanky extraterrestrial boarding a hovering spaceship in a snowy field before flying away above a Siberian forest? No, that's not true: The animated clip is a cropped version of a science fiction short film that first appeared on social media in early 2018. The claim appeared in a post and video on…

Does eating only the meat of female animals alter the hormones of human males, purportedly increasing their estrogen and making them take on more traits associated with femininity? No, that's not true: Multiple medical and meat experts verified for Lead Stories that this claim is false. A report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), for instance, shows that more…

Did it "rain worms" in China in early March 2023? No, that's not true: Two separate botanical experts confirmed individually to Lead Stories that the "worms" reported by some publications and social media users were the result of the annual flower blooms, called catkins, from poplar and other trees found throughout northeastern regions of China. One version of the claim…

Is the fast-fashion clothing brand SHEIN offering $1,000 in store credit to Facebook users for simply answering four questions? No, that's not true: SHEIN is a real clothing brand but this is not their promotion. The empty promise of store credit is a ruse to get people to enter personal information on a malicious website under the guise of taking…

Is NASA hiring 24 theologians in 2023 to prepare humans for an imminent alien discovery? No, that's not true: The recycled claim misconstrues the meaning of a 2015 grant to the Center of Theological Inquiry (CTI). Among other things, "The NASA-funded portion of this research concluded in 2017," according to a NASA spokesperson. The claim, which has been around since…

Is Feeding America running promotions on Facebook to give away $500 Walmart gift cards or food stamp vouchers to people who will answer four short questions? No, that's not true: Feeding America is a real charity but these promotions are not real. Spoofed pages are using the Feeding America name and logo. Real photos have been altered to bolster the…

Are menstrual cycles not natural and are they caused because the body is removing toxins? No, that's not true: "It is completely natural and it is essential," a physician and scientist told Lead Stories about the menstrual cycle. The claim that the menstrual cycle is due to the body removing toxins is not scientifically true, the expert said. The claim…

Are drivers with no DUIs getting $710 back in savings? No, that's not true: A post making the claim, which is misleading, is an apparent attempt to push people toward buying or switching their auto insurance coverage. The claim appeared in a Facebook post on March 14, 2023. The post included a short video and a caption that read: People…

Did a study find that men should masturbate 21 times a day to "significantly" reduce the risk of prostate cancer? No, that's not true: A 2016 study that looked into the relationship between ejaculation frequency and prostate cancer made no specific mention of masturbation. It did say its findings show more frequent ejaculations throughout adult life can play a beneficial…