Does a widely shared Facebook post with an image of dozens of jets show the aircraft used by attendees of the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow, Scotland? No, that's not true: Although some reports have estimated that more than 400 jets were used to transport the conference's high-profile guests, the picture used to make…

Did the U.S. military convict Chelsea Clinton of child trafficking children from Haiti? No, that's not true: An on-duty Pentagon officer told Lead Stories that this claim was "Not true." This claim is a follow-up to another fabriacted article from Real Raw News -- which says on its website that it contains "humor, parody and satire" -- claiming that the…

Did King Christian X of Denmark and his wife Alexandrine wear the yellow Star of David sewn on their clothing as an act of resistance against a Nazi rule, thereby encouraging all Danes to do this to protect Danish Jews -- and is this a photo of the King of Denmark and his wife? No, neither of these claims is…

Does a "Wheel of Fortune" clip depict a puzzle showing "BITC--- I- THE FUTURE" that is solved by a contestant saying "bitcoin is the future"? No, that's not true: The audio and image depicted in this video post have been altered to promote bitcoin via a cryptocurrency parody account The claim appeared in a Facebook post (archived here) on September…

Do Israel's health statistics show COVID-19 vaccines are ineffective and have not changed health outcomes of Israelis? No, that's not true. The data demonstrate Simpson's Paradox, the name for a common statistical problem: a trend apparent in several groups of data disappears or reverses when the data are combined because you aren't considering an extra, and consequential, variable. Looked at…

Do fully vaccinated people account for 82% of recent COVID-19 deaths and 66% of hospitalizations in the UK? Yes, that's true. The figures are found in the COVID-19 vaccine surveillance report - Week 43 by the UK Health Security Agency published on October 28, 2021. But the numbers don't tell the full story -- the report from which the percentages…

Did Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis say that Florida schools would no longer require vaccinations against polio, measles and mumps for its students? No, that's not true: DeSantis has only said that Florida schools will not require students to be vaccinated against COVID-19. The claim appeared in a quote tweet (archived here) published on October 31, 2021. The original tweet was…

Did conservative commentator Ben Shapiro tweet that liberals "make up anatomical parts like the 'clitoris'"? No, that's not true. A counterfeit Shapiro tweet that claims he doesn't believe part of the female anatomy is part of a series of satirical posts trolling him. The claim appeared as a post (archived here) where it was published on Facebook on November 1,…

Are vaccinated pilots dropping dead midflight? No, that's not true: "There is no truth to the claims about these two pilots," American Airlines told Lead Stories. The claims appear on a website known for farcical stories regarding political figures and other famous people, which Lead Stories has debunked multiple times. A message on the site notes that it "contains humor,…

Did actress Alyssa Milano say that, along with hair loss, she had several symptoms consistent with menopause that COVID-19 caused? No, that's not true: Milano did make a video demonstrating her hair loss from COVID-19 but did not mention other symptoms. The claim appeared in an October 27, 2021, Instagram post (archived here) of a TikTok video. The video included…

Did retired Lt. Gen. Steven L. Kwast reveal "surprising classified information" at a conference in Washington, D.C. -- that the United States has the technology to teleport human beings? No, that's not true: While Kwast did say that the technology could be built today to allow any human being to be delivered from any place on Earth to any other…

Did Japan drop its vaccine program in favor of ivermectin, wiping out COVID-19 in one month? No, that's not true: While coronavirus cases plummeted in Japan after peaking in the second half of August, 2021, it had nothing to do with the anti-parasitic medicine. Instead, Japanese officials credit an aggressive vaccination campaign. The claim appeared in an article on the…

Are 23,000 Wisconsin voters registered at a prison address with the same phone number proof of election fraud? No, that's not true: Some Wisconsin voter records have the same phone number due to a glitch that occurred when the state implemented a new voter registration system and the old system had a default field that required a phone number, according…

Was actor Alec Baldwin arrested for first-degree murder and the possession of child pornography? No, that's not true: The Santa Fe County, New Mexico, sheriff said on October 27, 2021, that no charges have been filed in connection with the "Rust" film set shooting. There is no evidence to suggest Baldwin has been arrested for the possession of child pornography.…

Did President Joe Biden resign and was House Speaker Nancy Pelosi detained? No, that's not true: The claims in this video and headline are not based in reality. This content is a mashup of material from various sources with a shocking headline intended to trick people into viewing the video. Lead Stories has previously noted this pattern of production in…

Did the CDC pay someone to store up to 500,000 "disposable coffins" in what had been a soybean field in Madison, Georgia? Does this indicate that there is a "plan" that might include "FEMA Camps" and an impending need to bury hundreds of thousands of people? No, that's not true: This video is a baseless, old, recycled conspiracy tale that…

Did the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) "completely" ignore controversy around Dr. Anthony Fauci and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) doing laboratory experiments on dogs? No, that's not true: PETA called on Fauci's boss to end experiments on dogs in labs under Fauci's supervision in August 2021. The claim appeared in a Facebook…

Are pieces of cockroaches found in chocolate and chocolate liquor? And when people have allergic reactions to chocolate, are they actually having allergic reactions to the cockroach pieces in the chocolate? No, that's not true: According to the FDA, 60 insect parts per 100 grams of chocolate or chocolate liquor are allowed; however, none of those insect parts are from…

Has the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) failed to recommend exercise and healthy eating as health measures during the COVID-19 pandemic? No, that's not true: Although the agency has not directly recommended those lifestyle choices as preventative measures against COVID, it has published numerous resources about building immunity against other infectious diseases and about the benefits of healthy…

Did Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene tweet that people should not be convicted on "flimsy" circumstantial evidence, such as "having a similar gait," "owning the identical shoes" or "being in DC and not having any alibi for that time"? No, that's not true: Greene's spokesperson told Lead Stories that the tweet was fake. There is no evidence that the tweet came…