2024 E

Does a viral image of world leaders showing their middle fingers as an act of apparent disagreement with U.S. President Donald Trump show a real 2026 TIME Magazine cover? No, that's not true: The magazine's website did not contain such a cover. The image displayed shows signs strongly pointing to generative AI. The claim appeared in a post (archived here)…

Is this a real photo from the Daily Mail showing Byron Noem wearing a light blue T-shirt with large fake breasts and a dog in the background? No, that's not true: That image of the husband of former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is not one of the photos published by the British tabloid. The authentic photos of Byron Noem…

Did former British Prime Minister Liz Truss blame "underground transgender mafia" for a KitKat chocolate heist? No, that's not true: The made-up quote originated from a satire account that had a history of attributing false statements about "underground transgender mafia" to Truss. As of this writing, no credible media outlet had reported the former prime minister making such a remark.…

Does a video of a burning ship actually show an oil tanker hit in the Strait of Hormuz on March 27, 2026? No, that's not true: No credible news organizations reported an oil tanker being hit in the Strait of Hormuz on that day. The video showed signs of AI generation. The claim appeared in a post (archived here, here…

Did Lufthansa offer free business class upgrades to people in Israel to apologize for the Holocaust? No, that's not true: The company publicly denied it. Two online AI detectors said the image purportedly providing the proof was likely to have been generated by AI. The claim originated from a post (archived here) published by the @0xRacist X account on March…

Did Hungarian opposition leader Péter Magyár, who is challenging sitting Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in the April 2026 election, describe U.S. President Donald Trump as "a senile grandpa" in a public speech? No, that's not true: The claim originated from a fake report that stole the logo of Euronews, a real news organization, in an apparent attempt to make the…

Is a video real that shows a biker on a snowy path being attacked by a mountain lion and falling off the mountain? No, that's not true: Two different online detection tools rated the video as very likely generated by AI. In reality, deadly mountain lion attacks are incredibly rare, with only 29 reported cases since 1868 according to the…

Did German Chancellor Friedrich Merz use $550 million of state funds to build a private "doomsday" plane? No, that's not true: There is no credible evidence or proof that Merz commissioned a fortified warplane. The website that published the article was registered one day before the publication of the story and is not an established media organization. An online detection…

Did U.S. President Donald Trump write a post about winning "the Iran thing" in a "Bigly" way on March 19, 2026? No, that's not true: The post did not originate from Trump's account. The image of the entry, as it first appeared on social media, carried a satire label. The claim originated from a post (archived here) published on X…

Was a video about Ukrainian drone operator Miroslav Radchenko shared on social media actually produced and distributed by Al Jazeera? No, that's not true: Lead Stories found no traces of such a report broadcast or shared online by Al Jazeera or any other media outlet. Spreading false narratives through clips with logos of real media organizations is a well-known tactic…