Current Events

Did a study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirm that men who receive COVID-19 vaccines "will tragically suffer a 24-year loss in their life expectancy"? No, that's not true: Dr. Nabin Shrestha, an infectious disease expert and one of the cited study's authors, told Lead Stories that such claims are "clearly misleading" and do not…

Are the tweets between Michelle Obama and Donald Trump about "destroying the country" and inviting "Mike" to play basketball real? No, that's not true: No such tweets from the former first lady's official account nor the former president's were published on August 30, 2019. The messages currently do not show up on the accounts, nor do they show up on…

Does this video show a real flight attendant and a "trans person" arguing over pronouns on a passenger aircraft? No, that's not true: This video was made by the comedian and content creator Jibrizy. The video is a clip from a longer Jibrizy scene, and the longer video ends with Jibrizy saying, "Hey guys, that was all a skit ...…

Did the United States transfer $6 billion to Ukraine by mistake? No, that's not true: In the summer of 2023, the Pentagon admitted that it overestimated the value of military gear sent to Ukraine due to an accounting mistake but the money was not misspent or even spent. It is still there as of this writing and will be used…

Did the state of California declare a "Trans History Month" before declaring a Women's History Month? No, that's not true: California first recognized Women's History Month in 1988, and the governor has proclaimed it every March since 1995. California is tentatively planning to celebrate its first Transgender History Month in August 2024, roughly 36 years after its first Women's History…

Does this video show a real, very angry mom removing a LGBT flag from a classroom? No, that's not true: This video was made by the comedian and content creator Jibrizy. The original full-length video posted on Facebook states that this is a skit in a disclaimer message at the end. The actors, including the woman who played the role…

Has the state of Florida officially classified COVID-19 mRNA vaccines as bioweapons? No, that's not true: There is no legislation in Florida that has classified mRNA vaccines as bioweapons as of September 18, 2023. One county Republican organization in the state voted to send a letter to Gov. and Republican presidential candidate Ron Desantis requesting the classification but the letter…

Did President Biden whisper "You're one sexy kid" in the ear of a child? No, that's not true: The audio had been edited. Lead Stories found the original video on TikTok and in it, Biden did not call the child "sexy." We also could not find any further evidence that this moment actually happened. The claim appeared on X, formerly…

Did Eglin Air Force Base make masks, COVID-19 testing, and booster shots mandatory after Labor Day 2023? No, that's not true: In a brief statement, the deputy chief of media operations with the Department of the Air Force at the Pentagon denied the rumor. He informed Lead Stories, "There are no COVID guidelines or mandates being implemented at Eglin Air…

Was the appearance of a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) field office in the Washington Square Mall complex in Chicago a sign of nefarious activity? No, that's not true: This implied claim is missing context. A state of emergency had been declared for Cook County, Illinois and the Chicago area after summer flooding in 2023. The FEMA organization told Lead…

Did at least two German news outlets, Deutsche Welle and the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, publish reports about a graffiti mural in Berlin that showed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy labeled a "Cannibal," eating the dismembered arm of a Ukrainian soldier holding an AR-15-style rifle? No, that's not true: These screenshots are fabricated propaganda, designed to look like news reports about anti-Ukrainian…

Does an image called "Mexico did it," referring to a supposed COVID-19 cure in Mexico, actually spread a virus within five seconds when opened on a phone and did CNN and the BBC report about this? No, that's not true: Lead Stories could find no online evidence that an image file that causes a virus on a cellphone even exists…

Did 80-year-old President Joe Biden get lost in the U.S. Capitol building on September 14, 2023 and did he need a "security intervention" to find his way? No, that's not true: The video making this claim misrepresents a scene from Biden's February 2023 State of the Union address by replacing the original sound. The actual C-SPAN footage of the event…

Did President Joe Biden describe African-American and Hispanic workers and veterans as "workers without high school diplomas"? No, that's not true: He was talking about unemployment rates for different groups of people. "Workers without high school diplomas" was one of the categories. The phase was not referring to African-American and Hispanic workers. The claim appeared in a post (archived here)…

Did singer Beyonce sing a rendition of "Lift Every Voice and Sing," also known as the Black national anthem, instead of "The Star-Spangled Banner" at a NFL game held in September 2023? No, that's not true: the claim appeared first on a website clearly marked as satire. Beyonce had not performed at any NFL games in 2023 at the time…

Will California legislative bill AB 957 require parents to affirm "gender transition" of any child or "lose custody"? No, that's not true: the bill would require judges in custody cases to consider a parent's affirmation of a child's gender identity as one of several components of "health, safety and welfare" determination already established in state law. The bill does not…

Does an insert included in the packaging for one diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTaP) vaccine show a direct link between immunization and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)? No, that's not true: A spokesperson for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) told Lead Stories that there is no established causal link between the two DTaP vaccines available in the…

Did U.S. Marines in Maui "tactically abort a gunfight with National Guardsmen"? No, that's not true: The website this claim was made on carries a disclaimer stating that it publishes satirical content. The claim appeared in an article published by Real Raw News on September 11, 2023, titled "Marines in Maui: "We're in the Shit!"" (archived here), which opened: United…

Did former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson perform a Nazi salute while standing in front of a controversial flag when he was visiting Ukraine? No, that's not true: This photo has been digitally altered. Johnson received an honorary doctorate, known as Doctor Honoris Causa, at Ivan Franko National University of Lviv. The original photo of the event does not show…

Did Whoopi Goldberg, Joy Behar and Sunny Hostin all say they'll quit "immediately" if "The View" adds Candace Owens as a host? No, that's not true: This claim comes from a satirical website that has a history of fabricating content surrounding popular topics, and features a disclaimer that states, "Everything on this website is fiction." Lead Stories could not find…