Voting

Did the Russian cities of Vyborg, Petrozavodsk, and Murmansk decide with an overwhelming majority vote to leave Russia and join Finland? No, that's not true: This fictional multipart story is illustrated with an AI-generated image of "unidentified militants" and a fictional map of "Greater Finland". The fake news narrative is a twist on an idea from the early 1900s regarding…

Did Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth share a video in which pastors said women should not be allowed to vote? Yes, that's true: Hegseth shared a link to a CNN report that interviewed leaders of the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches, which his own church is a part of. One pastor said he supports the repeal of the 19th amendment…

Did an X post by podcaster Alec Lace imply the life of Democrats is "at stake" if they vote against Republicans or MAGA? No, that's taken out of context: It originally quoted one of his own posts speculating that the murder of Minnesota State Representative Melissa Hortman was to be blamed on "her base" becoming "unhinged" after she voted a…

Did The Economic Times article that declared Kamala Harris won the 2024 election cite reports that concluded voting systems were rigged for Donald Trump? No, that's not true: The reports referred to by The Economic Times all stop short of declaring the election was stolen. Instead, those writers whom The Economic Times cited said there are questions about software and…

On June 3, 2025 I was invited to make a statement during a public hearing at the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium organized by the Special Committee on the European Democracy Shield. The hearing was titled "Enforcement of the EU Digital Rulebook and political advertising in the context of foreign interference: understanding Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI) and disinformation…

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…

Does a video of a Black man being escorted from St. Peter's Basilica show that Africans were banned from viewing the body of Pope Francis? No, that's not true: The man seen in the video was ejected after he jumped the long line of people waiting to enter, bypassed Vatican security, and began shouting. Lead Stories reporters at St. Peter's…

Did JD Vance's sister take to social media to ask internet trolls to stop saying the Vice President killed Pope Francis? No, that's not true: The video is one of a series by comedian Blaire Erskine in which she has played roles such as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's baby sitter and a Trump voter waiting in the cold for a…

If the 2025 draft of the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act is enacted, will 69 million married American women be unable to vote without getting a new official ID, as opponents have said on social media? The bill aims to prevent non-citizens from voting by requiring in-person registration with citizenship and ID documents in hand. SAVE Act sponsors say…