Business

Did Walmart announce it would shut down stores for in-person shopping on November 1, 2025, due to the expected lapse in federal funding of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program? No, that's not true: Lead Stories found no credible sources saying that. As of this writing, the company's website continued to advertise multiple in-person November deals. The claim appeared in a…

Does a viral video show authentic clips of four "Evangelical" pastors preaching against conservative positions on the border wall, guns, abortion and oil drilling? No, that's not true: The clips are lifted from an online account that describes itself as "Using AI to show a parallel universe." None of the quotes from the sermons in the video were found in…

Does an authentic video show a Tesla car charging from a diesel generator that it is towing as it drives? No, that's not true: The video was made by an artificial intelligence tool, according to a test by an AI detector tool. Obvious discrepancies from reality, such as the lack of an actual tow bar attaching the trailer to the…

Was a pair of Aerofoot "flying shoes" demonstrated at Gitex 2029 by a woman using them to hover over a stage, models floating over a catwalk or a man taking off from a pedestal? No, that's not true: The video, and several more like it, were posted by someone who labels themself as an "Artificial Intelligence Enthusiast" and an "AI…

Does a video clip show a young woman who had lung surgery because of energy drinks who will never be able to speak again? No, that's not true: The video footage was taken from another TikTok account where it was presented with no mention of energy drinks. The original @hey_itsabs video caption said that her lung had been punctured by…

Does a viral video really show a mother of six's rant about her "food stamps" and housing benefits being cut from $4,300 per month to $19 per month? No, that's not true: The woman appearing in the video has previously said she posts the rants as satire and they are not real. That dollar amount greatly exaggerates what is available…

Does a photo show Pam Bondi with Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein? No, that's not true: The image being widely shared across social platforms with the claim it shows the future Attorney General Bondi with Trump and Epstein is real, but the blonde woman is Belgian model Ingrid Seynhaeve, according to the photo agency that owns the photograph. The Getty…

Does a graph showing "loan locks" for non-permanent residents applying for FHA mortgages prove that immigrants overpaying for homes has inflated U.S. housing prices? No, that's not true: Non-permanent residents who applied for FHA loans were "not a major factor in the vast majority of local housing markets in the U.S.," according to a researcher with the company that produced…

Did Barron Trump drop out of New York University in the fall of 2025, as a viral social media post claimed? No, that's not true: The claim was made with no documentary, eyewitness or other evidence. The day before the post declared Barron had dropped out, Kai Trump, Barron's niece, posted a video in which President Trump said Barron was…

Did Elon Musk threaten to end his Super Bowl sponsorship if Bad Bunny performs at the halftime show? No, that's not true: Elon Musk does not sponsor the Super Bowl. The claim that he does and has threatened to end his sponsorship was published and promoted by a network of clickbait websites and Facebook page operated from Vietnam. The same…

Did Detroit singer Kid Rock call rapper Bad Bunny "a man in a dress" and criticize the NFL's selection of the Puerto Rican rapper for the 2026 Super Bowl halftime show? No, that's not true: There's no public record of such a remark by Kid Rock. There is no mention of the 2026 halftime show on Rock's social media accounts…

Did President Trump sign an executive order demanding that Universal Music Group sign his daughter-in-law Lara Trump to a multi-album record deal? No, that's not true: The claim posted on a self-described parody account on X has no basis in reality. The White House website does not mention such an executive order. President Trump has not posted anything about it…

Did Nike or Under Armour donate face masks and clothing to ICE agents involved in arresting undocumented immigrants in the United States? No, that's not true: The TikTok host making the claim gave no supporting information about how he confirmed the claim. Lead Stories found no evidence to support the claim and several red flags raising questions about the credibility…

Did Donald Trump once say he had talked to the "President of Puerto Rico", as social media posts claim? No, that's not true: Lead Stories found no public record of Trump ever saying that. He did, in 2017, say he had talked to the "President of the Virgin Islands," a gaffe which his staff at that time cleared up in…

Did Coca-Cola CEO James Quincey or various other people issue an ultimatum to the NFL about ending sponsorship of the Super Bowl if singer Bad Bunny was allowed to perform at the halftime show? No, that's not true: A Coca-Cola spokesperson denied it and a viral quote that said "I WILL END MY SPONSORSHIP OF THE SUPER BOWL IF THEY…

Did the White House announce that the U.S. Treasury would produce official one dollar coins bearing President Donald Trump's face? No, that's not true: There is no record or reporting of any such announcement by the White House on its website or by President Trump on his Truth Social account. The U.S. Treasurer replied to a post on X that…

Do viral clips with a pop-up warning advising people "under 18 years old" against watching videos of the "overcrowded Oktoberfest" show dramatic events in Munich, Germany? No, that's not true: It's engagement bait added to routine video of the annual beer and folk culture festival. Such pop-up banners attempt to make social media users hit "like" or "follow" buttons as…

Do California and New York issue commercial driver's licenses with no name given, and did Oklahoma arrest 125 "illegals" with such CDLs? No, that's not true: The so-called "No Name Given" commercial driver's licenses include a mononym, which is a single name. The use of mononyms is legal in the United States and is even accepted for U.S. passports. State…

Did "all of India's telemarketers" threaten "to go on strike permanently" if the U.S. places increased tariffs on imports from that country? No, that's not true: No media organizations reported that. The viral post that resurfaced at the end of September 2025 appeared to be a joke. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published on X on September…

Did Nicole Sirotek get a 4 a.m. call from the husband of a pregnant woman dying of liver failure after she took a large dose of Tylenol to disprove President Donald Trump's declaration that acetaminophen causes autism? Here's what we know: Sirotek, who Lead Stories has previously fact-checked for COVID misinformation, posted the anecdote on social media September 24, 2025,…