Fact Check

Does a photo on social media show the Apalachee High School shooter? No, that's not true: The picture is instead from an active defense training program by Reflex Protect, a company specializing in safety preparedness. The image is not connected in any way to the deadly shooting that occurred on September 4, 2024, in Winder, Georgia, about 50 miles northeast…

Do two reels posted to Facebook authentically show clips of tornadoes that occurred in Dubai and Canada? No, that's not true: Experts told Lead Stories that the twisters shown in the clips were fake and 100 percent AI-generated content. There are prominent elements in the videos that indicate manipulation and editing have been used to create them. One claim originated…

Is milk chocolate "fine" to feed dogs, while dark chocolate is toxic for them? No, that's not true: A professor told Lead Stories that both kinds of chocolate are toxic for dogs. Milk chocolate has less of the toxic compound in chocolate, theobromine, than dark chocolate but it does have it. The Food and Drug Administration does not recommend feeding…

Does a Google Earth video reveal an unknown "conspiracy" feature in Western Australia? No, that's not true: The video shows a well-known and long-established military installation in northwestern Australia. Naval Communication Station Harold E Holt is a joint Australian and United States naval communication station. The claim appeared in a post and video (archived here) published on Facebook on August…

Did 32 armed Venezuelans with motorcycles trespass and take over a Chicago apartment complex on September 2, 2024? No, that's not true: The only evidence cited online for the claim is a recording of a Chicago police dispatcher relaying what was told to her by a caller, the kind of report that can be made without corroboration or evidence by…

Does a viral picture of U.K. police officers appearing to kneel to a group of men in traditional Islamic clothes portray a real-life scene? No, that's not true: Three AI detectors said the image was generated using AI. The image showed classic indicators of that such as missing body parts and unnaturally positioned limbs. The image reappeared in a post…

Did humans artificially create Antarctica's ice cap in order to boost energy emissions from frozen metals? No, that's not true: Scientists say Antarctica began freezing about 34 million years ago due to a drop in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. That's about 28 million years before the earliest humans walked the Earth and about 34 million years before artificial refrigeration…

Did American golfer Tiger Woods refer to Kamala Harris' manner of speech as a "fake black accent," calling it "embarrassing and extremely offensive"? No, that's not true: The online rumor was first published by a self-labeled parody and satire account. Lead Stories found no confirmation that Woods ever said that. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) on X,…

Did Donald Trump appear in early September 2024 with a bandage on his ear on Fox News -- more than seven weeks after his ear was grazed by a bullet during an assassination attempt? No, that's not true: The picture of Trump on X with a bandage on his ear was from an interview only 11 days after the shooting.…

Does a video show Mongols and Hells Angels members heading to Colorado in 2024 to "deal with" Venezuelan gang members? No, that's not true: The original video is at least 14 years old. The video was previously used in 2020 to claim Hells Angels and Mongols members were heading to Seattle to confront antifa followers, and was fact checked by…

Does a video on Instagram Threads show Hells Angels and other motorcycle clubs going to Aurora, Colorado, to fight a Venezuelan gang after violence was reported in August 2024? No, that's not true: The video was first posted to TikTok in November 2022 -- nearly two years before media reported gang violence in Aurora. The video's original poster clarified on…

Did a CNN fact check find that Vice President Kamala Harris" lied 113 times" in her Democratic National Convention speech? No, that's not true: A CNN representative told Lead Stories the claim was false. CNN fact checked four claims in Harris' convention speech in an online article. The number 113 was not mentioned in the CNN article nor was there…

Does a video show Tim Walz lying about having served in a U.S. military deployment to Afghanistan? No, that's not true: Walz told the American Legion about a 2011 trip to Afghanistan he took as a member of Congress. He did not say he had served in Afghanistan as a soldier. The claim appeared in a post on X (archived…

Does a video show Kamala Harris saying Elon Musk "has lost his privileges" to speak freely? No, that's not true: Harris was speaking in 2019 about Donald Trump's posts on Twitter, according to a CNN transcript and video. She was discussing her call for Trump to be suspended from Twitter at the time. Harris did not mention Musk. The claim…

Was Irish teacher Enoch Burke arrested on September 2, 2024, for "refusing to endorse and affirm transgender ideology"? No, that's not true: Burke was arrested for contempt of court after repeatedly showing up to teach at a school where he was suspended and told not to return. His arrest by police was due to his noncompliance with a court order,…

Were posts on Facebook about an "approximately 3 year old" toddler an authentic try to find the boy's parents? No, that's not true: Those posts were a version of an already debunked bait-and-switch scheme involving scam real-estate ads. The scam targets people with low incomes and tricks them into disclosing sensitive personal information. The ruse resurfaced in a post (archived…

Does a video on Instagram show Hells Angels going to Aurora, Colorado, to fight members of a Venezuelan gang after gang-related violence was reported in August 2024? No, that's not true: The video was first posted to TikTok on July 7, 2024, more than a month before local media reported gang violence in Aurora. Elements in the video and on…

Did Melania Trump officially e-file for divorce from Donald Trump over Labor Day weekend 2024? No, that's not true: This story originated with a faked screenshot that looked like Newsweek reporting. The image resembling a Newsweek tweet was posted to several social media platforms by data scientist and whistleblower Rebekah Jones, who later claimed this was a test. After the…

Are social media posts about 16-year-old "Paul Ferrara" genuine calls for help in a missing person case? No, that's not true: These posts were flipped to "rent-to-own" scam posts shortly after publication. The supposedly missing teenager was described as "the son of a local police officer" in multiple U.S. locations. Lead Stories found no public confirmation as of August 30,…

Did the national police service of Ireland broadcast a video on TV in Pakistan to recruit people to come to Ireland to join the force? No, that's not true: The logo on the video is not a TV station in Pakistan -- "POC Global TV" is the YouTube channel of Pakistan Overseas Community. The Gardai's recruiting video aimed to bring…