Stew Peters

Does a real video show Iranian missiles striking the middle of an Israeli city at night? No, that's not true: This video is AI generated. Glitches typical of AI-generated content are visible in the video. In the foreground at the start of the video, the building in the lower right corner seems to spontaneously crumble. In the midground, the buildings…

Did U.S. Senator Ted Cruz say, "Let's stop attacking pedophiles" at a congressional hearing? Yes, he did, but his spokesperson described that as a gaffe, "a verbal slip", and clarified that the senator opposed such crimes. The overall context of Cruz's remarks did not contradict his press office's clarification. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published on X…

Did Erika Kirk lose custody of her children, as indicated by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna in an interview? No, that's not true: Rep. Luna said in a podcast interview that Kirk "lost her kids," but later said she "meant to say the kids lost their dad." There is no evidence to conclude that the widow of Charlie Kirk lost custody…

Did the Central Intelligence Agency in 1978 only request to black out mentions of Israel when journalists and historians sought to read documents about investigations into President John F. Kennedy's assassination? No, that's not true: The CIA wanted other things to be redacted, too, as seen in other files from the JFK collection. According to the agency's website, it generally…

Did actress Michelle Trachtenberg "Die Suddenly" at the age of 39 because of the COVID-19 vaccine? No, that's not true: Social media posts spreading the speculation offered no supporting evidence. As of February 26, 2025, no investigating officers or credible media organization reported any connection between vaccination and Trachtenberg's death. "Died Suddenly," the name on an X account posting the…

If a wildfire destroys cars, must it always destroy nearby trees as well? No, that's not true: Lead Stories found other examples of wildfires sparing trees while nearby cars and houses were incinerated. Experts explain that trees generally have a higher moisture content and take longer to heat up than closed structures like a car or home, making trees less…

Was Adolf Hitler nominated as a serious candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1939? No, that is missing context: The Nobel websites state that the nomination was not meant to be taken seriously and was withdrawn five days after it was made. According to the nominator, a Swedish anti-fascist, the nomination was intended as irony "to shame" Hitler "as…

Does a video on social media show firefighters being rescued by helicopter during the North Carolina floods in late September 2024? No, that's not true: The video is actually from September 15, 2024, in the Czech Republic, not the United States. The firefighters were helping people impacted by the raging waters when they became stranded and needed to be rescued…

Did World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus admit that he's unvaccinated for COVID-19 as of September 12, 2023? No, that's not true: A clip of Tedros explaining his delayed vaccination was misrepresented. He received COVID vaccination in May 2021, much earlier than the claim indicated. The claim was implied in a post (archived here) by the official account of…

Did a July 2023 report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention conclude that children are being harmed by masks, resulting in a 17 percent rise in developmental disabilities in children 3-17? No, that's not true: A misleading headline on a paywalled Substack blog post mentions a "New CDC Report" as if it offers evidence supporting the claim that…