Did a widely-shared video show people cheering for U.S. President Donald Trump in Scotland in July 2025? No, that's not true: The clip predated the visit by nine years. In reality, the footage showed concert goers. The claim appeared in a video (archived here and here) published on TikTok on July 26, 2025, under the caption: Scottish crowds give Trump…
Did Kyle Langford, a Republican candidate for governor of California, post a photo of himself in front of the Auschwitz-Stammlager Nazi concentration camp, along with the description "My 0% Unemployment Plan"? Yes, that's true: Screenshots of the X post were authentic. In response to criticism for the post, Langford insisted "I wasn't joking, I think it is exactly what is…
Is the viral video of Ozzy Osbourne saying "This was my final performance" an authentic recording of the late rocker? No, that's not true: It's an AI concoction. AI detection software found evidence that faces were manufactured for the video. The voice-over does not match statements issued by Osbourne, nor any fact-based reporting of his comments about his final concert…
Does a viral video show Cambodia firing RM-70 rockets at Thailand in 2025? No, that's not true: A viral post with over with 2.8 million views on X making that claim used footage that was already available on TikTok in 2022. The clip likely shows events from the Russia vs. Ukraine conflict. One example of the video showed up in…
Was a viral video clip a real prediction from a 1998 episode of The Simpsons that predicted Ozzy Osbourne's death? No, that's not true: The video only appeared online after Osbourne passed away and appears to be AI generated. Osbourne did make a cameo on the show in 2020. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) uploaded to TikTok…
Did Andrew Yang post on x that British musician Ozzy Osborne was "a true American original"? Yes, that's true: Yang, an entrepreneur who unsuccessfully ran for President of the United States in 2020 and the New York City mayorship a year later, did write that on X. The edit history of the post shows he later edited the post to…
Does a viral image showing "17-year-old Rowan Atkinson ... studying electrical engineering at Newcastle University" authentically portray the British comedian best known for playing Mr. Bean? No, that's not true: The image was AI generated. It was identified as such by Google, and Lead Stories' manual review of the picture confirmed that. The claim appeared in a post (archived here)…
Did a viral video showing a female soccer player shouting "Free Palestine" and lifting her shirt to reveal a Palestinian flag originate from actual news sources? No, that's not true: It appeared on a TikTok account that published AI generated content in the past. The footage contained several details hinting at an AI origin such as odd lettering, players melting…
Does a viral video really show an American B-2 bomber "surprised at high altitude" by enemy Su-34 and Su-35 jets from Russia? No, that's not true: The video originated on a TikTok channel that publishes video game footage. Despite this several social media posts presented the footage as real. The video appeared in a post on TikTok (archived here) where…
Did a video show U.S. President Donald Trump stealing the winner's medal of a player after the football Club World Cup Final in July 2025? No, that's not true: The medal in Trump's hands was earlier given to him by FIFA President Gianni Infantino. A widely-shared clip was edited to cut out the moment when the president received the medal…
Does a viral video on social media show Gazans who are fleeing Palestine arriving in Sweden? No, that's not true: The Ruahel Charity Association soccer team shown in the video represents various cities in the West Bank, not Gaza. The video shows players and coaches on a plane as part of a multi-city tour of Europe in July and August…
Did a viral video authentically show a woman being pulled high into the air by a hot air balloon after her foot got stuck in a rope? No, that's not quite true: The footage was not digitally edited or AI-generated, but it did not show a real, dangerous accident. Rather, it was a controlled stunt used by a French circus…
Did Chelsea FC photoshop President Trump out of their official trophy raising photo after the FIFA Club World Cup final? No, that's not true: A viral image that was digitally edited to remove Trump from the scene did not appear on the soccer club's official social media accounts. The image they actually posted does show Trump in the background. The…
Does a viral video show Piera Mosque in Barcelona, Spain on fire? No, that's not true: The viral footage with a caption about Spaniards burning "Piera Mosque" in that city actually shows a fire in Indonesia. That fire happened in Jakarta in 2022 during a renovation mishap. A fire did take place in a mosque in Piera on July 14,…
Does a viral video show a July 13, 2025, plane crash at London Southend Airport? No, that's not true: The footage predates it. It captures an airshow in South Africa that resulted in one plane hitting the ground and killing the pilot. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published on X on July 13, 2025. It opened: The…
Did Italy withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement, following the path of the United States? No, that's not true: As of this writing, the most recent version of the document, updated July 9, 2025, still names Italy as one of the treaty's participants. Neither the authorities nor credible media organizations reported the purported withdrawal. The claim appeared in a post…
Does a video shared on social platforms show Greta Thunberg dancing to Madonna's "La Isla Bonita"? No, that's not true: A reverse image search revealed the video was created by a group of Ukrainian video makers known as Cucumber Mafia. The dancing woman does not look like Thunberg and appears to be much older than twenty-two, which was Thunberg's age…
Did a viral social media video really show "incredibly rare white auroras" over Norway? No, that's not true: According to specialized detection tools the video was generated using artificial intelligence. It featured stars moving in the sky like dots in some kind of jelly instead of in straight lines, another clue the video was not a real recording. The video…
Did a TikTok video shared widely in July 2025 accurately claim that shackled bodies found in Europe were deportees from the U.S. that ICE had dropped into the ocean from planes? Here's what we know: Lead Stories has so far found no evidence to support that shocking claim. Spain's Civil Guard told Lead Stories that "ICE deportations flights from the…
Did an image shared widely in July 2025 show an authentic screenshot of a German weather forecast? No, that's not true: The image was edited to make it more dramatic. No lava appeared in the original footage. The claim appeared in a June 30, 2025, post on X (archived here). It read: Jeeeeezus, if you think the climate propaganda is…
Lead Stories is a fact checking website that is always looking for the latest false, misleading, deceptive or inaccurate stories, videos or images going viral on the internet.
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