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Did the New York Post report that USAID paid TIME Magazine $4 million to make Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy the 2022 Person of the Year, as a post and video on X.com claimed? No, that's not true: As of this writing, the newspaper's website did not show such a story. A search across a government spending database did not produce…

Hollywood star Gene Hackman and his wife were found dead in their New Mexico home on February 26, 2025, and people are alleging that it was an "double suicide." Here is what we know: Oscar-winner Hackman, his wife Betsy Arakawa and their dog were all found in different locations in their home and had apparently been dead for some time.…

Did the General Services Administration send Chelsea Clinton $43,000 per month since 2003? No, that's not true: That story originated on a website named "The Dunning-Kruger Times" which has a clear disclaimer it publishes satire. It is run by a man who runs a network of sites and Facebook pages designed to trick conservatives into sharing made up stories. The…

Did DOGE halt a $2.6 million annual payment to former President Obama for "Obamacare" royalties? No, that's not true: The story originated in a meme from a satirical Facebook page. The owner of the page is known for tricking conservatives into liking and sharing made-up content. The meme appeared in a Facebook post (archived here) published on February 25, 2025.…

Did President Donald Trump's eldest son Don Jr. say on his podcast that "the U.S. should have been sending weapons to Russia" instead of Ukraine, as an X post claims? No, that's not true: The episode in question did not contain such a statement. Two AI detectors indicated that the audio in the viral clip was likely a product of…

Did DOGE announce they discovered a Louisiana man with 34 different names, addresses and Social Security numbers who was collecting $1,168,646 in Social Security per year? No, that's not true: No such announcement appeared on DOGE's official X account or website. The claim appeared on an unaffiliated account on X that did not disclose the source of the purported information.…

Is the United States shutting down a Naval base in Alexandroupoli, Greece, as reported in February 2025? No, that's not true: A defense official told Lead Stories there is no "US base in Alexandroupolis." Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth denied the claim on February 24, 2025, saying at the White House, "It's a no," according to the White House press…

Did a viral post stating that the American Federation of Government Employees said that it was "cruel and disrespectful" to have to "justify job duties" accurately summarize the union's statement? No, that's not true: A widely shared post contained only the first part of the quote. In its original post, the union specifically discussed justifying job duties to an "out-of-touch,…

Did DOGE "uncover" a previously unknown $2 billion federal grant to Power Forward Communities, a nonprofit organization linked to Democratic activist Stacey Abrams? No, that's not true: The Environmental Protection Agency publicly announced the grant from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund on April 4, 2024. It was not covered up and Abrams' connection to the group is overstated, she was…

Did the claim that DOGE forwarded the names of 163 members of Congress to the IRS for "Immediate Audit" and that 156 of them were Democrats originate on an actual news website? No, that's not true: The meme featured a fake, cartoonish DOGE logo and came from a satirical Facebook page. The owner of the page is known for tricking…