Assassination

Was Cole Tomas Allen, the man accused of shooting at attendees at the 2026 White House Correspondents' Dinner, on the payroll of the Democratic National Committee and several California Democratic politicians, including Nancy Pelosi, Gavin Newsom, Kamala Harris and Adam Schiff? No, that's not true: A DNC spokesperson, a Newsom spokesperson, and a Pelosi spokesperson all told Lead Stories the…

Does a viral image of a man at the Western Wall actually show Cole Tomas Allen, the man charged with the attempted assassination of the sitting U.S. president? No, that's not true: Lead Stories found no credible sources linking the image to Cole Tomas Allen. Available evidence strongly indicates that the image is a product of generative AI. The claim…

Did a viral post prove that the woman collecting wine bottles at the 2026 White House Correspondents' Dinner was Ukraine's Ambassador Olga Stefanishyna? No, that's not true: The post did not include any evidence to support the identification. On the night of the shooting at the event, Stefanishyna looked different from the woman shown in the video. The claim appeared…

Did Jimmy Kimmel offer a "sincere apology to everyone regarding that widow joke" on Monday's episode of "Jimmy Kimmel Live!"? No, that's not true: Kimmel did not make the apology featured in a reel posted on Facebook. The Hiya Deepfake Voice Detector determined the audio track of the reel is an AI-generated voice clone. Melania and Donald Trump demanded ABC…

Does an abstract digital image from 2021 contain a hidden image showing the famous raised fist photo from the 2024 assassination attempt against President Donald Trump in Butler, Pa.? No, that's not true: The digital image was presented in 2026 with a transparent overlay so that both images were intermingled. It does not contain a hidden image of the 2024…

Does a viral video show high-resolution "unedited raw security footage" of the suspected shooter running through a checkpoint at the 2026 White House Correspondents' dinner? No, that's not true: The video was enhanced with AI, and, in the process, the technology altered the details. The clip showed glitches typical of AI-generated content, and the account that first published it confirmed…

Is a photo that shows Donald Trump with no damage to his ear immediately after the Butler assassination attempt authentic? No, that's not true: An online AI detection tool rated the image as 100% likely AI-generated. The account that originally posted the photo posts multiple AI images. Published images from the day of the assassination attempt show Trump with blood…

Did conservative political commentator and podcaster Tucker Carlson say, "Trump faked his assassination attempt in Butler," Pa., in July 2024? No, that's not true: Carlson has asked questions about the Butler assassination plot. But there are no reliable reports to support the claim that he ever said the attack on then-candidate Donald Trump was staged. The claim appeared in a…

Did the website pizzaamorestthomas.com that is mentioned in a 2015 email in the Epstein files look in February 2026 as it did in 2015 when the email was sent? No, that's not true: A prankster re-registered the expired domain name in 2026 after the Epstein files were released. The website currently features an AI or manipulated image of comedian Sam…

False claims about the Charlie Kirk assassination, the Jeffrey Epstein files, and purported verbal gaffes by President Trump topped the list of most-read Lead Stories fact checks in 2025. Here are our most read fact checks of the past year, reflecting our reader's interest in finding out the truth about various viral stories. If you see something suspicious in 2026,…