Did Kamala Harris buy her California home with money inherited from an ancestor who owned slaves -- one of whom was apparently her own great-great-great-great-grandmother? No, that's not true: It is a bizarre claim used to argue that the Democratic vice presidential nominee is now living off the profits of slavery. Harris shares the same family history of an estimated…

Was a popular Asian bistro in Atlanta closed down this morning after authorities found packaged rats and mice in the kitchen? No, that's not true: This is an old hoax that has been circulating since at least 2004 and is not true. The image used in the post was found online long before the purported restaurant bust. The claim reappeared…

Does video show House Speaker Nancy Pelosi "blowed out of her mind" at a news conference? No, that's not true: The short video clip from a May 20, 2020, Capitol Hill news conference was digitally slowed down to make it appear as if Pelosi was intoxicated. The original video revealed she was speaking and acting normally. The claim originated in…

Are hydroxychloroquine, zinc and Zithromax a cure for COVID-19? No, that's not true: As Lead Stories reported previously, global health experts continue to say that there are no drugs that have been shown to prevent or cure the infection. The claim appeared in a Facebook post (archived here). The post included a video and the following text: BREAKING American Doctors…

Did a study find a diet heavy with kimchi -- spicy fermented cabbage and other vegetables -- helped lower South Korea's COVID-19 fatalities? No, that's not true. A claim that has gone viral asserts that a study proved a connection between kimchi and South Korea's relatively low COVID-19 death rate, but research behind the study wasn't done in South Korea…

Was JFK Jr. spotted at the Fourth of July celebration at Mount Rushmore on July 3, 2020? No, that's not true: John F. Kennedy Jr. died in plane crash in 1999, which makes it a certainty that the son of the 35th president of the United States did not attend the Mount Rushmore speech of the 45th, President Donald Trump.…

Did Melania Trump wear a dress to the Mount Rushmore event on July 3, 2020, that featured drawings made by young sex trafficking victims? No, that's not true: The first lady's dress features sketches by university students from a London arts school taking part in a project at the Alexander McQueen store in London. There is no connection between the…

Does the organic sulfur compound methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) cure stage 4 breast cancer and reverse autism as well as relieve lupus symptoms? No, all but a grain of this is inflated or outright false. The grain of truth is that MSM has been found to reduce joint inflammation for some lupus sufferers. The other claims are false, as there is no…

Is it true that no doctor on television advises people to boost their immune system with vitamins and natural light, instead only pushing vaccines and drugs? No, that's not true. Plenty of coverage, including guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has been given to the strong benefits of vitamins and sunlight. The claim is in a meme…

Did Mel Gibson say that Hollywood is controlled by "parasites" who are involved in child sacrifice and pedophilia? No, there is nothing to substantiate the old claim that Gibson said it while on a promotional tour in 2017. The actor's spokesman told Lead Stories, "I can assure you that he never said such a thing ... he never stated that…