Is Starbucks "going cashless" regarding payment options for customers as of August 2022? No, that's not true: The article seen in this particular post that includes comments made by the Starbucks CEO fails to disclose that the cashless option was concerning the 2020 pandemic -- not a permanent change to cashless payments at all Starbucks stores. Starbucks also debunked this…

Are these posts proof that British elementary school students and kindergarteners are being taught to tolerate sexual abuse? No, that's not true: There's no evidence to authenticate pictures of a brochure about strangers who approach, with the brochure saying, "do not call him a pedophile." Posts about the brochure first appeared on a Russian social media platform, citing an un-named…

Will this sugary drink of orange peels, orange flesh, carrots, lemon juice, and ginger prevent diabetes and make a body lose "20 pounds in 20 days"? No, that's not entirely true: A Ph.D. clinical dietician told Lead Stories it's not recommended and poses a danger to a person's health, adding that while it might cause temporary weight loss, diabetes is…

Was a young man who was not carrying any identification hit by a car locally, and is the public's help now needed to identify him? No, that's not true: The teen in the photo was involved in a serious crash with a car on June 8, 2022, while he was riding his bicycle in the port town of Grimsby, in…

Does a Facebook video capture a scene showing Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina demanding that FBI Director Christopher Wray disclose the name of the person who ordered the raid of Donald Trump's residence in Florida? No, that's not true: The clip simply doesn't contain the exchange promised in its headline. The claim appeared in a Facebook post published…

Did Hallie Biden, the widow of the president's son Beau Biden, start a new Twitter account? No, that's not true: Twitter has taken down this account, but while it was up it did not have a checkmark confirming that it's authentic. It tried to lure people into donating money to a PayPal account. Screen grabs of the account are still…

Is monosodium glutamate (MSG) a neurotoxin that will kill brain cells and cause headaches, migraines, learning disabilities and Lou Gehrig's Disease? No, that's not true: The alarming message in this video is not supported by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which classifies the food additive to be "generally recognized as safe" (or GRAS, the commonly used FDA acronym for…

Did the U.S. military arrest Brian Stelter, a former CNN host, on August 27, 2022? No, that's not true: "This story is completely false," a duty officer at the Pentagon told Lead Stories. The Posse Comitatus Act forbids the U.S. military from arresting citizens. In addition, these claims were posted on a satirical website. The claim appeared in an article…

Does a video show Sen. Ted Cruz telling House Speaker Nancy Pelosi she is guilty? No, that's not true: The video shows a clip of Cruz speaking about various political topics but not about Pelosi. The video's headline does not match the footage. It appears to be clickbait to draw attention to a Facebook page. The claim appeared in a…

Did 44 percent of pregnant women in Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine trial have miscarriages? No, that's not true: Author/activist Naomi Wolf incorrectly analyzed public information when making the claim that "out of 50 pregnant women, 22 of them lost their babies." Wolf and two publishers have all retracted the claim, which continued to circulate nonetheless. Jeffrey Morris, professor of biostatistics at…

Will this oregano, turmeric and ginger tea cure women of cancer, fibroids or cysts? No, that's not true: There is no evidence that this tea will cure any cancer, fibroids or cysts. A registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN) told Lead Stories that believing this claim could be hazardous to a person's health. CancerResearchUK.org writes that there is some evidence that a…

Does the student loan forgiveness program announced by the Biden administration on August 25, 2022, treat canceled student debt as taxable income? No, that's not true. Although debt cancellation is usually considered taxable, the Biden student debt relief falls under the American Rescue Plan, which exempts most student debt relief from taxation through the end of 2025. The claim appeared…

Did a waitress at a diner hold a Dr. Mehmet Oz campaign sign so that it would read "NO"? No, that's not true: The picture with the "NO" sign has been edited. On Oz's verified social media accounts, the sign is much smaller and is being held the correct way. The claim appeared in an Instagram post on August 28,…

Did McDonald's pay $1.5 million in damages to a Black customer who asked a McDonald's manager for extra napkins and instead received a racist slur? No, that's not true: Court records show that the presiding judge dismissed the customer's lawsuit. The claim that McDonald's paid $1.5 million to a disgruntled customer appeared in an Instagram video on August 15, 2022,…

Does a Facebook video show three UFOs surrounding a nuclear plant? No, that's not true: The footage shows a coal-fired power plant in West Virginia, and the white orbs allegedly flying in the sky above have been created by a special effects video artist. The claim appeared in a video posted on Facebook on August 9, 2022, under the title:…

Did political commentator Ben Shapiro receive a Paycheck Protection Program loan (PPP) loan of more than $20,000 that was later forgiven? No, that's not true: Shapiro did not receive such a loan. Rather, an individual with the same name as Shapiro was given the loan for their real estate business and received loan forgiveness. The claim appeared in a tweet…

Is President Joe Biden going to launch a U.S. central bank digital currency (CBDC) in December 2022? No, that's not true: Although Biden signed an executive order in March 2022 that required research into the future of money and payment systems in the country, the order did not mandate that the federal government establish a national CBDC. The claim appeared…

Does a person alert the police to a robbery in progress if they enter their ATM PIN number backward? No, that's not true: The executive director of the ATM Industry Association (ATMIA) told Lead Stories, that while a patent and old legislation does exist for this type of technology, it has never been implemented in any ATM or banking system.…

Did a Brazilian gang use force to make the police comply as armed gang members moved through a street? No, that's not true: This video shows a bystander's view of a movie scene in production. The film, "Rocinha: Toda História tem dois Lados" ("Rocinha: Every Story Has Two Sides") was filmed in Favela da Rocinha, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in…

Will this jelly soap help you lose weight? No, that's not true: The Facebook post links to a product that is not even advertised in the video. The link leads to a similar product that Lead Stories debunked here. A registered dietician nutritionist Lead Stories spoke to says this is fake. The claim appeared in a Facebook post on August…