Athletes

Does a real photo show athletes wearing medals flipping the bird at President Donald Trump's back during the Patriot Games on Aug. 11, 2026, in Geneva, Ohio? No, that's not true: There is no evidence that Trump was ever flipped off by the young athletes sitting behind him during the event. The image contains visual inconsistencies commonly associated with AI-generated…

Is there a real photo of WNBA players Sophie Cunningham and Caitlin Clark wearing T-shirts with the words "XX-XY Athletics" printed on them? No, that's not true: The image was created with AI, as a verification tool showed. There are no credible news reports of the image being real. The claim appeared in a post made on X by user…

Does a real video show New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani not applauding at the funeral of Staff Sgt. Angel Rampersad? No, that's not true: The video is AI-generated. It was originally posted with an AI disclaimer. The video has since been republished without the disclaimer. The video was reposted (archived here) on X by @magagrunt1 on Aug. 1, 2026. The…

Did basketball player Sophie Cunningham refuse to apologize for her words about transgender athletes in women's sports and thus get suspended for five games? No, that's not true: This story originated as self-described satire. As of this writing, Cunningham was not suspended. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) on X by @mcafeenew on July 30, 2026. It opened:…

Are social media posts real that claim that a long list of athletes called the mandatory wearing of LGBT armbands a "political charade" and said they play for their team, not any movement? No, that's not true: None of the sports stars named in the posts made any such statement. The claims came from AI-generated Facebook posts produced by a…

Are viral posts real that claim Cole Allen, the suspect in the White House Correspondents' Dinner shooting, worked as a security staff member for sports teams? No, that's not true: The false claim is part of an AI-generated series of articles and posts created by a spam operation managed from Vietnam. Fake fan pages are used to target North American…

Are viral posts real that claim Cole Allen, the suspect in the White House Correspondents' Dinner shooting, worked as a driver for dozens of celebrities? No, that's not true: The false claim is part of an AI-generated series of articles and posts created by a spam operation managed from Vietnam. Fake fan pages are used to target North American and…

Did Cole Allen, the suspect in the White House Correspondents' Dinner shooting, work as a production crew member on films and tours for a dozen actors and musicians? No, that's not true: The false claim is part of an AI-generated series of articles and posts created by a spam operation managed from Vietnam. Fake fan pages are used to target…

Did the personal assistants to celebrities including Kid Rock, Prince William, Nikki Sixx and Tanya Tucker die in early 2026, all at age 30? No, that's not true: Nearly identical stories mentioning those and other famous names were all published by an international network of websites and Facebook pages. There were no news articles about the supposed deaths. Several versions…

Did dozens of celebrities suddenly all post a "positive update" on Facebook after a recent medical procedure or treatment? No, that's not true: The posts, often accompanied by images of the celebrity in question and a quote about "pushing through" a "few health challenges" or asking to "spare a prayer" were mass produced by a network of Facebook pages and…