Transgender

Did former British Prime Minister Liz Truss blame "underground transgender mafia" for a KitKat chocolate heist? No, that's not true: The made-up quote originated from a satire account that had a history of attributing false statements about "underground transgender mafia" to Truss. As of this writing, no credible media outlet had reported the former prime minister making such a remark.…

Does a viral video show real-life confrontations involving transgender and LGBTQ+ people trying to access women's restrooms? No, that's not true: The clip was AI-generated. The account that posted it first had a corresponding label, and the video contained multiple artifacts that ruled out the possibility of it being authentic footage. The claim originated from a post (archived here, here…

Do photos and social media accounts of Austin Tucker Martin reveal him to be transgender? No, that's not true: The photos purporting to show Martin, who was killed while allegedly armed and breaking into President Trump's private Mar-a-Lago club, are mislabeled. They show an unidentified person who does not resemble verified family photos of Martin. No credible reporting about Austin…

Was Enoch Burke arrested again in 2026 for refusing to use "they" pronoun for a student? No, that's not true: Burke was arrested outside Wilson's Hospital School in Multyfarnham, Ireland on Jan. 19, 2026 for again violating a court order that he stay away from the school. Irish newspapers operating independently of one another reported that the High Court which…

Was there an Antifa sticker and another one claiming "transgender surgeries performed in this car" on the Honda Pilot Renee Good was driving when she was shot and killed on a Minneapolis street by an ICE agent? No, that's not true: The image of a cluster of car stickers is labeled as AI-generated. The TikTok account that first used the…

False claims about the Charlie Kirk assassination, the Jeffrey Epstein files, and purported verbal gaffes by President Trump topped the list of most-read Lead Stories fact checks in 2025. Here are our most read fact checks of the past year, reflecting our reader's interest in finding out the truth about various viral stories. If you see something suspicious in 2026,…

Does a viral clip show real "transgender Providence Police Department spokesperson Lyle Culpepper" demanding that the public stop saying "the Brown shooter"? No, that's not true: The person in the video is comedian L.E. Staiman. In interviews, Staiman has said that he believes his videos are so absurd that people can easily understand they are parody and satire. The claim…

Was "Irish Christian teacher Enoch Burke" sentenced to life in prison for transphobia and "refusing to use a transgender student's pronouns"? No, that's not true: The sentencing judge explicitly stated that the decision is about the repeated contempt of court for repeatedly ignoring an order to not trespas on school property. The same judge said that Burke "does not have…

Did Paul McCartney, Steven Tyler, J.K. Rowling, and Mick Jagger say "I see the world being corrupted by Gayness"? No, that's not true: The quote about Paralympic sprinter Valentina Petrillo was made up and attached to those four celebrities in a series of click-bait of social media posts manufactured by a spam factory in Vietnam. AI tools and fake Facebook…

Did Lady Gaga, Kelly Clarkson, Avril Lavigne, Miranda Lambert, Vince Gill, Derek Hough, Brandon Lake, Cliff Richard, athletes Dak Prescott and Lamar Jackson and other celebrities ask for their footage to be removed from Netflix over LGBTQ content? No, that's not true: There are multiple social media posts showing different celebrities and athletes with a message that they told Netflix…