Germans

Did Germans students participating in a mock federal election known as U18, for people under 18, overwhelmingly vote for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, resulting in a sweep by a "massive majority" in every polling district? No, that's not true: A graph shared on social media shows the results of one polling place. While the AfD did win…

Does a 2025 poll say Germans think President Donald Trump is the greatest threat to world peace just weeks after taking office? No, that's not true: The poll being circulated in February 2025 was actually conducted in 2019, toward the end of Trump's first term in office. The graphic being shared comes from a 2019 Fox News story reporting that…

Was Adolf Hitler, the head of the Nazi Party and dictator of Germany, actually black and does this photo prove it? No, that's not true: This picture is a color photo converted into black and white from an episode of a TV sitcom called "Community." The claim appeared on Instagram on December 23, 2022. It said: The more you know…

Is the interior Earth actually hollow, with access points at the North and South Poles that lead to a mythical land that is home to superhumans and extraterrestrial beings with advanced technology? No, that's not true: Though treated as a scientific supposition in the 17th century, the so-called "hollow Earth theory" has been disproved through modern science; yet it remains…

Did Adolf Hitler say that even in his death he would start World War 3? No, that's not true: This is a recycled conspiracy theory, and multiple historians told Lead Stories it didn't happen. Also, contrary to the claim's suggestion, Hitler and his Nazi regime were racist toward African Germans -- primarily based on skin color. The claim appeared in…

Did King Christian X of Denmark and his wife Alexandrine wear the yellow Star of David sewn on their clothing as an act of resistance against a Nazi rule, thereby encouraging all Danes to do this to protect Danish Jews -- and is this a photo of the King of Denmark and his wife? No, neither of these claims is…

Was German former Formula One race car driver Michael Schumacher in a coma for six years after a skiing accident? And did his wife Corinna go into bankruptcy to fund her husband's medical treatment? No, that's not true: Michael Schumacher suffered traumatic brain injury when he fell and hit his head on a rock while skiing in Meribel in the…

Did Hermann Goering say that the only reason Nazism worked in Germany was because the government convinced the German people to be afraid? No, that's not true: A history professor says there is no evidence of Goering, a leader in Nazi Germany who was convicted of war crimes, saying this in the official transcripts during the Nuremberg Trials that followed…

Did Allied bomber pilots drop wooden bombs on German decoy airfields made from wood to let them know they saw through the ruse? While no historical sources can confirm this story beyond a doubt, researchers have compiled eyewitness accounts and other evidence that indicate that this is more than an urban legend. Versions of this story emerged as early as…

Did people in Germany protest against higher gas prices by abandoning their cars in the streets? No, that's not true: The photograph supporting the claim shows a traffic jam in Shenzhen in the Guangdong Province of China in 2012, and not a protest in Germany. While gas prices in Germany increased significantly on January 1, 2021, due to a newly…