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Pope Francis

  • Fact Check: Video Does NOT Show Pope Leo XIV Turning Away From Pride Flag -- It's The "Pace" (Peace) Flag

    Fact Check

    Does a video posted to social media show Pope Leo XIV turning away from a Pride flag as he moves through a receiving line? No, that's not true: It's not a Pride flag but a flag commonly flown at Italian peace marches that says "PACE," which is Italian for "peace". Furthermore, it's not clear the Pope turned specifically away from…

    • May 13, 2025
    • by: Dean Miller
    Fact Check: Video Does NOT Show Pope Leo XIV Turning Away From Pride Flag -- It's The "Pace" (Peace) Flag Not Pride Flag
  • New Pope, New Conspiracies, But At The Speed Of Social Media

    Analysis

    ROME - That puff of white from atop the Sistine Chapel has long been a starting gun for conspiracists. With a new character in the story, they proclaim they alone tell the truth about dark forces playing pontifical puppeteers. These stories humans tell to make simple sense of complex events move ever faster, now that there's money to be made…

    • May 9, 2025
    • by: Raffaella Menichini
    New Pope, New Conspiracies, But At The Speed Of Social Media Fighting Fakes
  • Fact Check: NO Evidence Pope Leo XIV Was A 'Celebrated' Jazz Trombone player AKA 'Bobby Prev' In His Spare Time In Chicago

    Fact Check

    Did Robert Francis Prevost moonlight as "Bobby Prev", a "celebrated jazz trombonist" in Chicago who "headlined several jazz festivals in the '70s and '80s"? No, that's not true: The archives of the Chicago Tribune, which has long provided detailed coverage of jazz, contain no celebrations or even mentions of such a musician. Similarly, a search of the GoogleNews index of…

    • May 9, 2025
    • by: Dean Miller
    Fact Check: NO Evidence Pope Leo XIV Was A 'Celebrated' Jazz Trombone player AKA 'Bobby Prev' In His Spare Time In Chicago No Evidence
  • Fact Check: Fake Headline About Pope Leo XIV And 2020 Anarchist 'CHAZ' Protest Did NOT Appear In New York Times -- Location Wrong, Too

    Fact Check

    Did the New York Times publish a story headlined "Pope Leo XIV Was a Founding Member of the 2020 Anarchist Portland Autonomous Zone Known as CHAZ"? No, that's not true: A faked screenshot of such a headline also claimed Robert Francis Prevost spent time writing for an "anarchist zine" in Portland about how to "fist-fight police officers". No such article…

    • May 8, 2025
    • by: Maarten Schenk
    Fact Check: Fake Headline About Pope Leo XIV And 2020 Anarchist 'CHAZ' Protest Did NOT Appear In New York Times -- Location Wrong, Too Fake
  • Fact Check: New Pope Leo XIV Is NOT 'Registered Republican' -- He Voted In Republican Primaries But Illinois Voters Needn't Declare Party Affiliation When Registering

    Fact Check

    Does a viral image prove that the newly elected U.S.-born Pope Leo XIV is a "registered Republican" from Will County, Illinois? That omits some context: According to the Will County Clerk's Office file, the new Pope did vote in Republican primaries in the past, but that doesn't make him a "registered Republican" because Illinois does not require eligible voters to…

    • May 8, 2025
    • by: Uliana Malashenko
    Fact Check: New Pope Leo XIV Is NOT 'Registered Republican' -- He Voted In Republican Primaries But Illinois Voters Needn't Declare Party Affiliation When Registering Fact Check: New Pope Leo XIV Is NOT 'Registered Republican' -- He Voted In Republican Primaries But Illinois Voters Needn't Declare Party Affiliation When Registering Lacks Context
  • White Smoke: Cardinals Choose American Robert Prevost As Pope Leo XIV -- What We Know So Far

    Breaking

    Cardinal Robert Prevost, a Chicago native, was chosen as successor to Pope Francis. Prevost, who becomes the first American to lead the Roman Catholic Church, has chosen the name Leo XIV. (Source: Lead Stories' screenshot of Vatican TV) Prevost's earned a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Villanova University in 1977, and a Master of Divinity from Catholic Theological Union…

    • May 8, 2025
    • by: Alan Duke
    White Smoke: Cardinals Choose American Robert Prevost As Pope Leo XIV -- What We Know So Far American Pope
  • Private, Ritualistic And Consequential: The Conclave Is Conspiracy's Natural Habitat

    Analysis

    The conclave to elect Pope Francis' successor is set to start on Wednesday, May 7, 2025. It is a centuries-old ceremony entrenched in secrecy and powerful rituals, which strikes the world's imagination. This year, 135 cardinals from 71 countries across the five continents (of which Pope Francis has appointed 108, and 12 come from countries that never had a cardinal…

    • May 3, 2025
    • by: Raffaella Menichini
    Private, Ritualistic And Consequential: The Conclave Is Conspiracy's Natural Habitat Extra Omnes
  • Fact Check: FAKE Video Shows Pope Francis With 'Three Hands'

    Fact Check

    Did a widely-viewed video authentically show Pope Francis in a wheelchair with three hands? No, that's not true: that clip was fake and a digital fabrication. It recreated a real moment, shown in authentic video, in which Francis emerged on to the loggia of St. Peter's Basilica to give the Easter Sunday "urbi et orbi" blessing, one day before his…

    • Apr 29, 2025
    • by: Lead Stories Staff
    Fact Check: FAKE Video Shows Pope Francis With 'Three Hands' Fake Footage
  • Fact Check: Videos About 'Pope Francis' Dog' Are NOT Authentic News Reports

    Fact Check

    Did Pope Francis' dog "refuse to leave his grave"? No, that's not true: None of the variations of the internet rumor support that by links to credible news reports or authentic footage or photographs from the papal funeral, which was covered in detail by multiple journalistic organizations. There is no evidence that the late pontiff kept any pets during his…

    • Apr 28, 2025
    • by: Uliana Malashenko
    Fact Check: Videos About 'Pope Francis' Dog' Are NOT Authentic News Reports Didn't Happen
  • Fact Check: FAKE Photo Shows Many Pope Francis Mourners, Not Just Trump, Dressed in Blue

    Fact Check

    Did an authentic photograph show several mourners wearing blue attire at the funeral of Pope Francis? No, that's not true: An image shared widely on social media had been digitally edited to change the color and tone of the clothes worn by several dignitaries, including former President Joe Biden. Some observers had criticized President Donald Trump for wearing a blue…

    • Apr 28, 2025
    • by: Lead Stories Staff
    Fact Check: FAKE Photo Shows Many Pope Francis Mourners, Not Just Trump, Dressed in Blue Digital Edit
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EFCSN International Fact-Checking Organization

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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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.
Spotted something? Let us know!.

Lead Stories is a:

  • Verified signatory of the IFCN Code of Principles
  • Verified EFCSN member
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