&Quot;Deepfake&Quot;

Did a Facebook post confirm that Whoopi Goldberg's house burned during the January 2025 Los Angeles wildfires? No, that's not true: The website the rumor was found on described itself as a page specializing in "Satire and Parody News," adding that their team is "dedicated" to bringing readers "the latest and greatest in fake news." The image seen in the…

Does an authentic video show Taylor Swift saying that the 2025 Los Angeles fires are divine retribution for American actions in Gaza? No, that's not true: The original footage dates back to a 2021 appearance on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon." Analysis tools determined with 100 percent confidence that the voice added to the clip on social media is…

Does an authentic video show Dr. Mehmet Oz promoting a "cure" for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD? No, that's not true: AI detection tools found the video was likely created using AI technology. There is no known cure for COPD, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The claim appeared in a post and video (archived here)…

Does an authentic video show U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer describing complaints of predatory sexual behavior against Jimmy Savile as "frivolous"? No, that's not true: According to multiple AI video and audio detection tools, the video was fake and created with artificial intelligence. Starmer, who served as the director of public prosecutions for England and Wales from 2008 to 2013,…

Did a Facebook post prove Elon Musk and Taylor Swift jointly endorsed a power-saving device called "Stop Watt"? No, that's not true: There is no record of either Musk or Swift publicly endorsing this product. Photos used in social media posts that reported the supposed endorsement were found to have likely been AI-generated. These posts included a link to a…

Is a photo that shows Israeli soldiers in front of ruins in Gaza forming a Hanukkah menorah authentic? No, that's not true: This image is fake. The image creator told Lead Stories that he made it "using AI and some Photoshop edits afterward." The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published on X on December 25, 2024. A caption…

Does an authentic video show Elon Musk promoting a Barbara O'Neill remedy for erectile dysfunction and prostatitis? No, that's not true: Two AI detection tools found that the video was likely manipulated using AI technology. Lead Stories has found other AI-generated endorsement videos for O'Neill, an unregistered health practitioner. The story appeared in a post (archived here) published on Facebook…

Did an authentic image show Bono and Bob Geldof waving Israeli flags? No, that's not true: AI detection tools found that the image was generated using AI technology. The image first appeared on a self-described "fake news" and "satire" account on X. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) on X on December 17, 2024. It said: Make songs…

Did an authentic photo show Elon Musk dancing in a mesh halter mini-shirt in 2018? No, that's not true: Two AI detection tools found that the image was generated using AI technology. Lead Stories found that the photo was posted in March 2024 -- not in 2018. Furthermore, the account that posted the image provided no evidence to support this…

Did Elon Musk announce a Tesla phone model called "Pi" as of November 26, 2024? No, that's not true: There was no such announcement on either the Tesla website or Tesla's official X profile when this fact check was written. The image shared in a post reporting the "breaking" announcement included digitally manipulated images. The claim appeared in a post…