United States

Did a widely shared image accurately depict the all-female crew of a Blue Origin spaceflight, with one post describing it as "one giant leap for Botox"? No, that's not true: The image was digitally edited. The original picture was taken by Justin Hamel for the New York Times and showed Katy Perry, Gayle King, Aisha Bowe, Kerianne Flynn, Lauren Sánchez…

Did a video authentically show someone proving Starbucks is running a "Coffee Scam" by showing all cup sizes contain an equal amount of coffee? No, that's not true: The video was published by an account that says it publishes "magic, pranks and games". In a later video the account claims to "explain" the trick by repeating it with coffee being…

Does a draft paper by scientists at The Cleveland Clinic "reveal" that the 2024/2025 flu shot increased the risk of flu, as social media posts claim? No, that's not true: This study's finding that vaccination was "associated with" a higher risk isn't the same as showing the vaccine is what caused increased risk. The authors of the study found that…

Did a video shared in April of 2025 authentically show a teacher yelling at students in her classroom for bullying a student who wore a MAGA hat? No, that's not true: the video was one of several featuring the same actors in a variety of roles and settings. In another video the same "teacher" throws a student out of her…

Did tech billionaire Elon Musk "step in" to take care of an infant left behind by its parents? No, that's not true: The viral rumor originated from AI generated images coupled with AI generated text. As of April 15, 2025, no credible media outlet reported the purported event. The claim reappeared a post (archived here) published on Facebook on April…

Did Elon Musk use a Neuralink implant to save the life of a boy named "Tristan Killip", who had been comatose for a year after a drowning accident? No, that's not true: The story, shared widely in April 2025, was no more than fantasy fiction, and news archives contained no trace of a purported press conference featuring Musk and the…

Does a bodycam video authentically show a black female lawyer arguing with an "arrogant cop" after she was trying to throw out trash at her office? No, that's not true: The video in which a woman who says her name is "Linda Jones" gets in a confrontation with a police officer originated on a YouTube channel that says it publishes…

Did Cody Balmer, who is suspected of arson at the residence of the governor of Pennsylvania, publish a selfie with a "Fuck Trump" inscription? No, that's not true: The picture that went viral after the release of the suspect's name was digitally altered. The caption of the original selfie, which predated the attack by five years, did not mention Donald…

Did a U.S. Congressman named "Jack Kimble" post an apology on X for confusing Nayib Bukele, president of El Salvador, with the name of a sex act? No, that's not true: As of April 2025, there is no member of the U.S. Congress named Jack Kimble. An X account with the handle "RepJackKimble" posts content that is intended to be…

Did Rick Harrison from the TV show "Pawn Stars" receive a sentence of life imprisonment in March 2025? No, that's not true: Videos claiming that the Las Vegas reality TV star had been convicted of "trafficking looted artifacts" were no more than fantasy fiction. Harrison appeared on his podcast, and posted on social media, several times after his supposed incarceration.…

Are homicide detectives searching for Joselyn Valdo Santos for the killing of three-month-old Charlotte Jones on April 1, 2025? No, that's not true: Social media posts making the claim are part of a bait-and-switch scam designed to lure you into sharing personal information that can then be sold or used to scam you further. These posts use unrelated mugshots and…

Did investor Warren Buffett publish an opinion article titled "Sell American. I Am" on April 11, 2025? No, that's not true: A viral image purporting to be a screenshot of such an article was created as a joke according to the account that posted it. There is no record of such an article in Google News. Buffett did write an…

Did U.S. President Donald Trump write on social media that he would increase tariffs on China for every 1,000 "likes" he gets? No, that's not true: The viral image of the supposed screenshot of his account was fake. The promise to increase levies on China based on likes did not appear on Trump's social media, as of this writing. The…

Did a video shared widely in April 2025 contain an authentic audio recording of a Spirit Airlines Flight 861 pilot landing at an airport despite orders from an air traffic controller to cede the runway to the U.S. president? No, that's not true: the audio was fake, and the incident was a fabrication. The account that originally posted the video…

Did U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement post on X about ideas crossing the border illegally, along with people, money and products? Yes, that's true: Screenshots of the post were shared widely, amid a backlash around what critics described as the concept of "illegal ideas." ICE later deleted the post, but archived versions of it prove its authenticity. A screenshot of…

Did Casey Anthony, a Florida woman cleared of murdering her daughter in 2008, open a daycare center in Branson, Missouri in April 2025? No, that's not true: A widely-shared Facebook post was created by an account that labels its output as satire. In March 2025, Anthony described herself as a legal advocate and researcher. The claim that Anthony opened a…

Do viral posts tell a real-life story about Elon Musk meeting Keanu Reeves in a heated televised exchange in 2025? No, that's not true: No credible media outlet reported such a debate, as of April 9, 2025. Many of the social media posts about the supposed confrontation resorted to the apparent use of generative AI to make images that barely…

Does a video of a rental van being stopped on an Atlanta highway show the rescue of children from human traffickers? No, that's not true: The people in the back of the van were members of two families who were moving household goods, not human trafficking victims, according to Gwinnett County, Georgia, police quoted in several news reports. The driver…

Does a viral clip authentically document a scene showing a Black FBI agent being stopped by a police officer while driving a car? No, that's not true: The footage originated from a site that publishes reenactments, according to its own disclaimer. That page, weeks old as of April 10, 2025, is not a government website. The claim appeared in a…

Did the rapper Eminem announce in April 2025 that he would hold a concert in Israel in June? No, that's not true: A poster shared widely on social media billed the show as the star's "first time in Israel" and gave a date of June 1, 2025. However, no such announcement could be found on Eminem's official website or social…