Nazi

Does a real photo show someone dressed as Spider-Man punching Jake Lang at a protest in Minneapolis? No, that's not true: This specific image is AI-generated, although a person dressed as Spider-Man was filmed attacking Lang and later both were arrested. The OpenAI Verify tool found a SynthID watermark in the image indicating it was made with OpenAI tools. The…

Did architect Leonhard Gall submit plans to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler in 1935 for a ballroom next to the Chancellery, with an air-raid shelter and a bunker underneath? Yes, that's true: Gall did submit plans for a large reception hall that could be used as a ballroom, and an air-raid shelter called the Vorbunker was built beneath it. The deeper…

Is Timothy Donahue the ICE agent who shot and killed Joan Sebastian Guerrero in Maine on July 13, 2026? No, that's not true: Neither Immigration and Customs Enforcement nor the Maine Attorney General's Office has released the identity of the federal immigration agent involved in the shooting. A news report in April 2026 also identifies Donahue as a Border Patrol…

Do viral screenshots of a Wikipedia article about French soccer referee François Letexier confirm that he is Jewish? No, that's not true: The edits made after the 2026 Egypt-Argentina FIFA World Cup game didn't link to credible sources stating that. Lead Stories found no publicly available information suggesting that Letexier grew up in an "Orthodox Jewish family." The claim appeared…

Does a real English-language France 24 video factually describe a Ukrainian bill about construction of a monument aimed at commemorating national heroes? No, that's not true: The head of France 24 English told Lead Stories that the French broadcaster never produced such a video. Contrary to the fake video on social media, the actual Ukrainian monument legislation is not centered…

Was a woman decapitated in Scandicci, Italy, in June 2026? No, that's not true: The case is not that recent. Italian media widely reported that both the murder and the arrest of the suspect happened in February 2026. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published on X by @TaraBull on June 11, 2026. It opened: 🚨#BREAKING: A 44-year-old…

Does a Justice Department indictment document say the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) organized the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, and paid $300,000 to transport people there? No, that's not true, but it's complicated: The indictment states that one person did receive $300,000, but that SPLC paid that out over nine years. It also says that person "arranged…

Is a video that shows Joe Rogan saying he is considering refusing to commentate the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fight at the White House legitimate? No, that's not true: The video was labeled "Contains AI-generated media." Rogan did criticize the event on his podcast, saying he does not like the idea of fighting outside, but he did not say he…

Does a real screenshot show U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner of Maine made "German WW2 references" in sexual messages? No, that's not true: The image originated on social media accounts known for their satirical content. There is no evidence that such an exchange ever took place between Platner and anyone else, and Lead Stories found no credible news coverage documenting…

Did The Wall Street Journal report that U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner of Maine called his penis "Mein Furher" in a message to a woman? No, that's not true: That expression doesn't appear anywhere in the article reviewed by Lead Stories, and no credible evidence shows that Platner made such a statement. The purported quote is fabricated, and the phrase…