Gas Prices

Is the Speedway gas and convenience store chain giving $500 gift cards to consumers who answer three questions as part of a price-gouging lawsuit settlement? No, that's not true: The post is a hoax. There is no evidence on Speedway's official web page of any lawsuit settlement and a link included with the post doesn't route uses to any real…

Was the price of gasoline $5 a gallon when President Joe Biden took office in January 2021? No, that's not true: The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) website says a gallon of regular unleaded gas was only going for close to $2.33, on average, at that time. For September 2022, the most recent month government statistics were available at…

Was the state of Texas, not Saudi Arabia, the largest oil producer in the world on October 7, 2018? No, that's not true: In 2018, Texas produced, on average, roughly 4.42 million barrels of oil a day, while Saudi Arabia produced nearly 10.6 million barrels a day on average, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration's website. An energy expert…

Did the Saxon State and University Library Dresden (SLUB), one of the largest German academic libraries, ask its readers to bring in Russian books "for heating purposes"? No, that's not true: SLUB General Director Katrin Stump denied the leaflet's authenticity and said that the library had filed a criminal complaint about the claim. The claim appeared in a Facebook post…

Did Sen. Ted Cruz angrily call Rep. Adam Schiff a "son of a bitch" in public remarks during a news conference held by Senate Republicans? No, that's not true: Cruz criticized only President Joe Biden during his remarks and never mentioned Schiff nor used the phrase "son of a bitch." The claim appeared in text for a video posted on…

Did President Joe Biden make the same speech on the dates of "12/21 and 3/22"? No, that's not true: While it's unclear whether the post is referring to dates by month/date (i.e., December 21 and March 22) or month/year (December 2021 and March 2022), White House transcripts show he touched on the same topics in speeches two days apart in…

Does squeezing the gas pump at "top speed" put more air in your tank, ultimately overcharging you for less than a full tank worth of fuel? No, that's not true: A representative of the American Automobile Association (AAA) emailed Lead Stories to say that the speed at which a person pumps gas does not impact the cost or amount of…

Is Shell gas company doing a giveaway of $500 gas cards for $1.95 or a $250 gas card after completing a survey? No, that's not true: A spokesperson for Shell responded to Lead Stories by email on June 15, 2022, saying that Shell is not providing either of these services. There is no evidence on Shell's website of the company…

Did the U.S. inflation rate hit an all-time high in 2022? No, that's not true: While inflation, as measured by the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI), is at a high level of 8.0 percent in June 2022, a dozen other years have had higher inflation rates since the CPI was first calculated in 1913. The all-time record of 17.8 percent…

Was gasoline costing $8.88 a gallon at a Murphy USA gas station in Jasper, Alabama, in early June 2022? No, that's not true: A representative for Murphy USA emailed Lead Stories to say that the Jasper location was not open for business when this picture was taken because the station was still under construction. The claim appeared in a Facebook…