Illinois

Does a viral video show a "Massive Tornado Hits Springfield Illinois Today July 20, 2025"? No, that's not true: That video clip has been online since at least July 2024. It showed news coverage of Typhoon Yagi striking China's island province of Hainan. The mislabelled video was posted July 20, 2025 to TikTok (archived here) on the @disaster.world1 account, titled…

Does a viral image show "a 27-year-old man from Jackson, Mississippi," who was arrested in early July 2025 "after allegedly hacking into the Hinds County Human Services system and approving every single application for food stamps"? No, that's not true: Variations of this recycled rumor have been circulating on the internet at least since 2020. No credible media organization reported…

Did Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger write the warnings about the Big Beautiful Bill that have been attributed to them in a viral post? No, that's not true: Kinzinger took to social media to call it out as a fake. The words in the meme do not match public statements or social media posts by the two former Republican members…

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…

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…

Did wrestler Dwayne Johnson, also known as The Rock, threaten to "punch" Elon Musk on X in March 2025, if the tech billionaire "doesn't leave America alone"? No, that's not true: A review of Johnson's posts doesn't confirm he ever published what was attributed to him. The claim originated from an obscure clickbait website whose disclaimer said that it "assumes…

Are people in various communities in the United States and England being warned about an 18-year-old known as Russell Robinson or Dycorrian Wayne Lofton knocking on doors and attacking people after he gains their trust? No, that's not true: Facebook posts calling on readers to be vigilant and lock their doors used mugshots of unrelated people. The posts are part…

Is there a legitimate warning circulating about a man named "Talavera, Benjamin" on the run and charged with stabbing to death someone's two Caseyville, IL neighbors, two Pensacola, FL neighbors, two Portage, IN neighbors? No, that's not true: Despite what viral social media posts say, the person in the photos is not named Talavera or Benjamin and is not wanted…

Does a video clip capture what was happening inside an Air India plane that was forced to return to Chicago on March 5, 2025, due to out-of-order toilets? No, that's not true: The video predates the incident by two months. It started circulating on social media in early January 2025. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published on…

Are several social media posts truly expressing concern over an actual missing teen named "Natallia Goodman"? No, that's not true: "Natallia Goodman" was supposedly missing in multiple locations, indicating that this is a made-up story. The posts spreading the information are part of a common social media real estate scam. One instance of the claim appeared in a post (archived…