Current Events

Do images circulating on social media show press photos of Anthony Fauci under arrest and in police custody? No, that's not true: Fauci, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has not been arrested. These are not photos of a real incident but are images generated by an artificial intelligence program. Jack Posobiec posted the…

Do the photos in a post that purportedly depict the Statue of Liberty in 1898 and 2017 prove that sea levels aren't rising? No, that's not true: Without detailed information about tides and sea conditions at the moment each photo was taken, the photo comparison has little value. An oceanographer at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) provided detailed…

Is Child Protective Services a "for-profit corporation" that has no legal power to make demands or exercise authority "over you and your children"? No, that's not true: No public Child Protective Services (CPS) agency is registered in the U.S. as a for-profit corporation. Federal law gives states the authority to investigate reports about child abuse and neglect and they do…

Do Pfizer documents show that the company's COVID-19 vaccines contain graphene oxide? No, that's not true: The section of the document in question describes a procedure for analyzing a protein sample from the virus under a sophisticated microscope that includes the use of graphene oxide to help with imaging. Graphene oxide is not among the ingredients for the COVID shots.…

Does drinking urine improve eyesight? No, that's not true: A medical doctor told Lead Stories there are no clinical studies concluding that drinking urine would improve one's eyesight. In addition, drinking urine can give the body bacteria like E. coli, salmonella or staphylococcus, a University of Pittsburgh Medical Center article says. The claim appeared in a video on Instagram on…

Did Rep. Lauren Boebert literally mean that banning pistol braces is causing "millions of boating accidents" when she posted a tweet critical of "Biden's ATF rule"? No, that's not true: The term "boating accident" is a well-known in-joke among gun owners. The hypothetical "boating accident" is offered as a tongue-in-cheek explanation to the government for a registered gun that has…

Were Corn Flakes, the cereal product that launched the Kellogg Company, invented to "kill the libido" of patients at a health resort? No, that's not true: Several versions of the Kellogg Company's website attribute the creation of the cereal to an accident. Although John Harvey Kellogg, who is often credited as the creator of the cereal, was known for his…

Did British publisher Robert Maxwell, who owned Macmillan/McGraw-Hill School Publishing Co. in a joint venture from 1989 until his death in 1991, put false information in American textbooks? No, that's not true: McGraw Hill told Lead Stories that Maxwell exerted no editorial control over the learning materials produced by the company. The claim appeared in a post and video on…

Will rubbing your ears increase the amount of energy that goes toward the kidneys? No, that's not true: A nephrologist told Lead Stories there is no scientific evidence that the ear exercises shown in an online video will increase kidney health. The claim appeared on Facebook (archived here) on March r, 2023, with the caption "#healthtips #kidneycare." It opens with…

Do these photos show former President Donald Trump being arrested by a group of New York City law enforcement officers? No, that's not true: At the time these images appeared online, on March 20, 2023, and March 21, 2023, Trump had not been indicted or arrested. These images were generated with an artificial intelligence program that produces images from text…

Was the "Teletubbies" television show based on a story of four psychotic children who purportedly were abused and who ultimately died horrifying deaths in a mental health institution? No, that's not true: The creators of the show said they were inspired by astronauts from the moon landing in creating their characters and by British comedians. The claim appeared in a…

Does a photo of a helicopter airlifting a large creature show evidence that Bigfoot is real? No, that's not true: This image has been edited. The silhouette of the Bigfoot that appears below the helicopter was pulled from a popular 2006 edited-photo hoax. "The Dead Bigfoot Photo" was debunked in 2015 when the original, unedited photo of an Alaskan hunter…

Did DirecTV, an American video programming distributor, say it "will drop ABC" if the TV channel continues to broadcast "The View," a talk show originally created by Barbara Walters and, of this writing, co-hosted by Whoopi Goldberg? No, that's not true: The story first appeared on a satire website. The claim originated in an article (archived here) published by the…

Does a "previously censored video" show antifa members dressing up as supporters of Donald Trump in Washington, D.C., on January 6, 2021? No, that's not true: The video found on social media was not censored before and features a short clip from a much longer video by actor Walter Masterson, who was out that day to record comedy bits but…

Is there evidence that shilajit, a substance originating from high mountain rocks, can cure any form of cancer in two days? No, that's not true: While some rodent studies testing the effects of shilajit along with proven cancer treatments seem promising, and while cell culture studies using shilajit also seem promising, there has not been any consensus among medical professionals…

Does consuming seafood cause the form of cancer called leukemia? No, that's not true: No scientific proof exists that eating seafood causes leukemia, a University of California, Riverside expert, who specializes in the study of how environmental factors cause cancer, told Lead Stories. The Mayo Clinic, a leading medical research institution, does not name seafood as one of the possible…

Did the U.S. military arrest Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot as of March 17, 2023? No, that's not true: It is not the U.S. military's jurisdiction to arrest civilians. This claim comes from a website that regularly publishes fabricated content. The claim appeared in an article published by Real Raw News on March 16, 2023, titled "Military Arrests Lori Lightfoot |…

Did it "rain worms" in China in early March 2023? No, that's not true: Two separate botanical experts confirmed individually to Lead Stories that the "worms" reported by some publications and social media users were the result of the annual flower blooms, called catkins, from poplar and other trees found throughout northeastern regions of China. One version of the claim…

Is NASA hiring 24 theologians in 2023 to prepare humans for an imminent alien discovery? No, that's not true: The recycled claim misconstrues the meaning of a 2015 grant to the Center of Theological Inquiry (CTI). Among other things, "The NASA-funded portion of this research concluded in 2017," according to a NASA spokesperson. The claim, which has been around since…

Is Feeding America running promotions on Facebook to give away $500 Walmart gift cards or food stamp vouchers to people who will answer four short questions? No, that's not true: Feeding America is a real charity but these promotions are not real. Spoofed pages are using the Feeding America name and logo. Real photos have been altered to bolster the…