Is a photo that shows Melania Trump smiling and standing next to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell authentic? No, that's not true: Online detection tools flagged the image as likely digitally altered and likely AI-generated. One rated it as 97 percent likely to be digitally edited. The claim appeared in an April 10, 2026, post on X.com by the account…
Is a video of a defendant trying to escape from court by leaping toward the ceiling authentic? No, that's not true:A detection tool flagged the video as likely AI-generated. Additionally, Lead Stories could not find any official reports related to such a claim outside of social media posts. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published on Instagram on…
Does a video show burning tower buildings in Tel Aviv following Iranian strikes in April 2026? No, that's not true: The video shows a deadly fire in Hong Kong in November 2025. The footage is not related to the Middle East conflict. The claim appeared in an April 1, 2026, post on X account @drhossamsamy65 (archived here). It opened: 🔴…
Is a video of a two-year-old running to their soldier dad authentic? No, that's not true: A detection tool flagged the video with a 99.7% probability of being AI-generated. Lead Stories did not find any version of the video that included identifiable information about the toddler or their family. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published on X…
Does a real photo show Australian politician Jacinta Allan with LGBTQ+ and Islamic country flags behind her? No, that's not true: It appears that another image was edited -- possibly using AI -- to create the photo of Allan with the flags in question. There is no reliable evidence to support the claim that Victoria's premier ever stood in front…
Is a video of a woman crying while tied up from the Epstein files released by the U.S. Department of Justice? No, that's not true: The footage is from a 2007 mockumentary-style horror film titled "The Poughkeepsie Tapes." The video exactly matches footage from the movie that is easily found on the internet. The claim appeared in a post with…
Does a video show Israelis storming a ship to flee the war and go to Cyprus? No, that's not true: The scene is from the Philippines and shows people boarding a ferry service. The video has been online since at least March 8, 2026, and shows several details consistent with the Philippines. The claim appeared in a post and video…
Did Keanu Reeves, Clint Black, Billy Joel and other celebrities suddenly all discover that a woman who once cared for them was still working part time at 85 to pay her rent? No, that's not true: The sob story about all of them "stepping in" and donating a "permanent home" and "financial support" was made up by a network of…
Does a video show angry people at Ben Gurion Airport throwing things at staff behind the counter in March 2026, demanding tickets to leave Israel? No, that's not true: The video shows a group of Israeli youth throwing objects at Arab employees at Jerusalem's Cinema City theater and chanting "Death to Arabs." It happened months earlier, in July 2025. The…
Does a photo show an Iranian missile with "In memory of the victims of Epstein Island" written on it? No, that's not true: An online AI image detection tool found that the image shows signs of digital manipulation, with portions edited or generated using Google AI. A "clean" version of the image without any writing on it also dates back…
Lead Stories is a fact checking website that is always looking for the latest false, misleading, deceptive or inaccurate stories, videos or images going viral on the internet.
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