Is Benadryl a helpful first-aid treatment for venomous snakebites? No, that's not true: This anecdote about using Benadryl as a part of first-aid care for a person who has been bitten by a venomous snake is not supported by evidence or the current advice for emergency care of snakebites by toxicology experts. The story seems to have appeared on Facebook…

Are COVID-19 vaccines "weapons of mass destruction"? No, that's not true: There's no public evidence the vaccines put the future of mankind at risk. To the contrary, medical authorities widely agree the vaccines represent one of our best hopes of quashing the pandemic. The claim is one of several made during a video that recycles debunked conspiracy theories about COVID-19…

Did a March 2021 poll show that 70% of Georgians said they would vote for former President Donald Trump in 2024? No, that's not true: The March 7-9, 2021 poll by Trafalgar Group/InsiderAdvantage notes that only likely GOP primary voters were polled on Trump. That question was not asked of Georgians of all party affiliations. The claim appeared in a…

Are mysterious remains discovered in the Atacama Desert in Chile proof of a tiny alien life form? No, that's not true: In 2003, a 6-inch-long mummified body was found in La Noria, an abandoned mining town in the Atacama Desert. Scientists from several fields of study have examined photos, X-rays, and DNA samples from the remains and they all conclude…

Did state Rep. Terry Meza support her proposed amendment to Texas' "Stand Your Ground" law by saying robberies are "equitable distribution of wealth" and that home intruders only carry guns "to provide an incentive to cooperate"? No, that's not true. The quotes were fabricated to satirize Meza's proposal to require residents to exhaust all efforts to flee before turning to…

Did a patrolman choke on his gum and was lifesaving aid rendered to him by a man he had just handcuffed and taken into custody? No, that's not true: This video is from Rick Lax Productions, creator of fictional short videos. It is of the "social dilemma" genre of skit videos featuring dramatic, funny, or awkward situations and pranks. When…

Was Oprah Winfrey wearing an ankle monitor during her interview with Meghan Markle and Prince Harry? No, that's not true. Video shows the billionaire TV mogul was wearing a pair of boots on which creases and folds naturally moved as she changed position during her March 7, 2021, interview with the royal couple that aired on CBS. Nicole Nichols, spokesperson…

Is U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry a major stockholder in RWE AG, a German multinational energy company, that owns wind turbines in Texas? No, that's not true: In an email to Lead Stories, the company's head of investor relations said that Kerry is not a major stakeholder, and a State Department spokesman responding to Lead Stories' inquiry…

Do kids have to have the same father to receive the $1,400 stimulus check? No, that's not true: Nothing in the 628-page legislation, known as the American Rescue Plan, specifies that. Some users on social media apparently took the claim as real, but all signs suggest it is satire. The claim appeared in a Facebook post (archived here) published by…

Did a San Diego police officer point his gun at a young boy during a traffic stop? Police say no, that's not true, but various videos of the incident, including those released by police, suggest both the still-photo-based claim and the police narrative leave out important context. Police video shows the officer had his gun drawn and pointed in the…

Is Donald Trump the "real" president, does Joe Biden not fly on Air Force One, does hydroxychloroquine "fix" COVID-19 and do masks not stop the spread of coronavirus? No, that's not true: Biden won the election and became President of the United States at 12:01 on January 20, 2021, per the U.S. Constitution. Trump is no longer the president and…

Did the COVID-19 stimulus bill give members of the U.S. House of Representatives a $25 million bonus? No, that's not true: The $1.9 trillion bill, known as the American Rescue Plan, does not give bonuses or raises to House members. The claim states that "Line 17" awards the bonus. The 628-page bill has a line 17 on almost every page,…

Did PepsiCo give $100 million to BLM? No, that's not true: False rumors that circulated in summer 2020 and were debunked at that time resurfaced in March 2021. In summer 2020 several large corporations pledged large sums of money to racial equality initiatives. Some posts on social media misrepresented these corporate pledges as donations that were going directly to The…

Did U.S. Navy SEALs arrest Hillary Clinton? No, that's not true: Clinton was not arrested under a secret order former President Donald Trump gave to the Navy. "The story is fabricated and not factual," Cmdr. Courtney Hillson, assistant chief of information, Media Operations/Plans for the U.S. Navy, told Lead Stories. The claim appeared as an article published by Real Raw…

Did Anthony Hopkins fake receiving a COVID-19 shot from a staffer at a California hospital in the video the actor posted on Instagram? No, that's not true: In a March 10, 2021, email to Lead Stories, a spokeswoman for CHA Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center said that "the video does indeed show our staff administering the full dose of vaccine to…

Is 92% of the $1.9 trillion stimulus bill going to "foreign entities"? No, that's not true: The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 consists almost entirely of domestic spending, a fact that's confirmed by experts and the legislation itself. The claim is made without sources or evidence. The claim appeared in a Facebook post (archived here) published on March 8,…

Is the crow the only bird who dares to peck an eagle, and does the eagle rid itself of a pesky crow by flying to an altitude lacking in oxygen? No, that's not true: Many bird species, including crows, engage in mobbing behavior against birds of prey much larger than themselves, including eagles. This mobbing can be to defend territory,…

Does "next week" in March 2021 have a time change, full moon AND Friday the 13th? No, that's not true. There is not a week of March 2021 when all three things happen. While daylight saving time does begin on March 14, 2021, a full moon doesn't happen until March 28, and the 13th day of March, 2021 is a…

Was the "Keystone" pipeline "just about completed" when President Joe Biden stopped it? No, that's not true: Less than one tenth of the Keystone XL segment of the Keystone system was complete when Biden revoked the permit for Keystone XL by executive order on January 20, 2021. The XL, which is the fourth phase of the Keystone system, had not…

Did Instagram and Facebook recently change the feed ranking so that no more than 7% of friends and followers can see a users' posts, and does commenting "Yes" on a post trick the algorithm to show more of the page's posts to more people? No, that's not true: Versions of this message have been circulating since at least 2014 and…