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Did majority X owner Elon Musk share a public message on July 30, 2024, that users of the social-media platform would be punished for calling supporters of former President Donald Trump weird? No, that's not true: As of this publication, no such post was available on Musk's verified X profile, and an archive of his profile page did not reflect…

Does a scene from an episode of "The Simpsons" show that Lisa Simpson would win an election against former President Donald Trump? No, that's not true: An image from an episode in which Trump did not appear was altered to substitute Trump's likeness, including the bandage he wore after a July, 2024 assassination attempt. The episode actually features a different,…

Does a photo taken less than two weeks after Donald Trump's right ear was grazed in an assassination attempt show it undamaged? No, that's not true: The photo on social media predates the shooting by more than seven years. There's no evidence to suggest that the former president's ear has fully healed in less than two weeks since the July…

Did Donald Trump's pick for vice president, Sen. JD Vance, write about a drunken party with embarrassingly graphic details on page 21 of his book "Hillbilly Elegy"? No, that's not true: The person who made the post on social media later clarified it was not real. Additional searches in the hard copy and digital copies of the book found no…

Did Ohio Republican Senator JD Vance describe having sex with a couch in his memoir, "Hillbilly Elegy," as a post on X claimed? No, that's not true: Lead Stories searched through Vance's book and watched the movie adaptation. There was no reference to or description of such an event in the book or movie. The claim appeared in a post…

Did former President Donald Trump state that he won't debate Vice President Kamala Harris in a presidential candidate debate? No, that's not true: Trump said the opposite, that he wants to debate Harris. Harris is the presumptive 2024 Democratic nominee for president. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) on Threads on July 23, 2024. The post's caption read:…

Does a video show former President Donald Trump playing golf with an undamaged ear 10 days after an assassination attempt on July 13, 2024? No, that's not true: The photo in a social media post was taken from a video recorded the week before the shooting, the video's creator said in a public statement. FBI records confirm Trump's injuries, which…

Did Donald Trump wear a bandage on the "wrong ear" -- the left one -- at the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on July 15, 2024? No, that's not true: The video that makes this claim has been flipped on a horizontal axis, reversing everything in the scene as a mirror would. The former president was wearing a bandage…

Did an executive of the gay dating app Grindr say that the Republican National Convention is "basically Grindr's Super Bowl"? No, that's not true: Video on social media that makes the claim shows a user scrolling through Grindr accounts at a concert of gay Australian musical artist Troye Sivan, not at the the Republican National Convention. Lead Stories could find…

Does the conservative Project 2025 initiative to reshape the U.S. government propose cutting billions of dollars from veterans' benefits and disability compensation? No, that's not true: The four policies listed in a post on Facebook do not appear in the Heritage Foundation's policy agenda. However, the purported "PROJECT 2025 VETERANS CUTS" do come from the organization's "Budget Blueprint for Fiscal…

Does a viral video show former President Donald Trump falling asleep on the first day of the Republican National Committee convention in July 2024? No, that's not true: The image was taken when he had his eyes closed during a prayer. Photos and video from the event show that other attendees did that, too. The claim appeared in a post…

Did Secret Service personnel grin widely, showing their teeth, while escorting former President Trump to safety after the assassination attempt at his campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13, 2024, as a social media post claims? No, that's not true: A tool created to detect ai-generated images found substantial evidence the image had been remade with generative ai systems.…

Did an image of Donald Trump in a coffin drawn in the style of animated series "The Simpsons" predict the assasination attempt on Donald Trump in Pennsylvania on July 13, 2024? No, that's not true: the image in question never appeared in a "Simpsons" episode. It has been online for several years and has been debunked by Lead Stories and…

Was comedian Sam Hyde identified as the man who shot at Donald Trump in Pennsylvania on July 13, 2024? No, that's not true: The comedian is routinely blamed for being the perpetrator of shootings or other violent incidents as part of a bizarre internet in-joke. The FBI has identified the gunman as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, from Bethel Park in…

Did the Butler, Pennsylvania, Police Department say the gunman who shot Donald Trump on July 13, 2024, was arrested at the scene and has been identified as Mark Violets? No, that's not true: Butler Police Chief Bob O'Neill told Lead Stories that their department made no such confirmation. Additionally, he said, "The Secret Service is issuing all press related material."…

Does the conservative "Project 2025" initiative to reshape the U.S. government call for a ban on abortion and contraceptives, increased retirement age, cuts in Social Security and Medicare benefits, plus elimination of overtime pay and of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration? No, that's not true: Lead Stories found these claims, posted on Facebook, to be false by reviewing the…

Was a military-like zone with fences set up last minute where President Joe Biden was scheduled to give his press conference on July 11, 2024? No, that's not true: A video on social media shows fences around the Walter E. Washington Convention Center that were previously set up for security for the 2024 NATO Summit. The Metropolitan Police Department in…

Does a photo show a picnic at a Black Detroit church visited by Trump in June 2024? No, that's not true: The photo was taken in 2023 at a fly-fishing lodge in Idaho. It pictured a gathering of TV and movie celebrities that happened over 1,600 miles from the 180 Church in Detroit, and the photo was posted originally on…

Does a photo of five Black female judges show all the judges who could hear former President Donald Trump's expected appeal of his conviction on 34 counts of falsifying business records in New York? No, that's not true: The photo, distributed on social media, shows five of the 21 judges on the New York State Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First…

Did Marjorie Taylor Greene tweet, "Everyone needs to buy more 'FVCK JOE BIDEN' flags"? No, that's not true: This is a fake tweet that originated from a parody account on X. There is no evidence that this tweet was ever published on Greene's real verified X account. A spokesperson for Greene said the account making the post was not affiliated…