Does a video show Ukrainian children singing the unofficial anthem of the Luftwaffe? No, that's not true: They aren't singing a Nazi German air force song. The song is by Bots, a Dutch folk rock group. The claim appeared in a tweet (archived here) published by AZmilitary1 on September 23, 2022. The tweet opened: Nothing unusual, just Ukrainian children singing…

Did Russians fleeing President Vladimir Putin's partial mobilization of troops for deployment in Ukraine immediately form a "35KM" (about 21.7 miles) line on September 21, 2022 at the Finnish border? No, that's not true: The viral video started circulating online two days before this announcement. According to Finnish officials, border checkpoints saw a slight increase in traffic on September 21,…

Did the death of a child result in a parent's social media offer to give away a Sony PlayStation 5 (PS5) game console for free because it painfully reminds them of their loss? No, that's not true: The post is a device used to initiate a scam that Lead Stories has traced to more than 200 nearly identical posts. The…

Did no Republicans thank U.S. President Joe Biden for taking out the leader of Al Qaeda? No, that's not true: Several GOP members of Congress publicly acknowledged Biden for the July 31, 2022 drone strike in Kabul, Afghanistan that killed Ayman al-Zawahiri, the leader of Al Qaeda and one of the conspirators behind 9/11. The claim was shared on a…

Did the U.S. military convict and execute Brian Stelter, a former CNN host, on September 20, 2022? No, that's not true: These claims were posted on a satirical website. Lead Stories had already debunked the site's prior claim that Stelter was arrested by the U.S. military on August 30, 2022, which renders this claim even more impossible. Further, the Posse…

Did an internationally recognized legal tribunal go after "Charles Windsor, aka 'King of England'" on September 20, 2022 to hold him accountable for "Crimes against Humanity committed by his parents"? No, that's not true: The "International Common Law Court of Justice" and its "Special Tribunal" do not exist under international law. The claim's assertion that the late Queen Elizabeth II,…

Did CNN report about "Two nurses fired after being caught at work"? No, that's not true: CNN never published a story with this headline. This post is designed to introduce the name of a website to an audience on social media. Similar tactics have been used to advertise other dating and hook-up sites since at least 2018. The post, designed…

Was an American flag with no stars behind former President Donald Trump at a rally and does such a flag mean those that refuse to surrender will face "total annihilation"? No, that's not true: The lighting in the image may appear to be obscuring the stars but multiple photographs from news sites and photo agencies from the rally where the…

Does a viral video describing a father's "deathbed confession" prove the U.S. government faked the 1969 moon landing? No, that's not true: There is a significant amount of evidence that NASA landed on the moon and experts Lead Stories spoke with refuted claims suggesting otherwise. In the video, a man who identifies himself as Gene Gilmore (given name Eugene Reuben…

Does a video of a metal spoon being rubbed on a foot reveal a seven-second method to reverse Alzheimer's disease, the most frequent cause of dementia in the U.S.? No, that's not true: The video has nothing to do with a proven medical method to cure Alzheimer's. There is no cure for Alzheimer's, an expert told Lead Stories. The claim…