Politics

Did Elon Musk brag about firing "crybaby liberals"? No, that's not true: This video was made using AI, or artificial intelligence. The Instagram post where this claim originated seems to be an ad for an app that uses AI to make public figures say whatever the user wants. The claim appeared on Instagram (archived here) on May 4, 2023, with…

Did Hillary Clinton say she sacrificed chickens to Moloch in a 2009 email? No, that's not true: The line in question was not written by her. The content of the exchange shows that the phrase was used as a figurative expression of cautious optimism. The claim appeared in a video published on Instagram on May 7, 2023, under the title:…

Do nasopharyngeal swabs, like those used in PCR (polymerase chain reaction) testing for COVID-19, affect your longevity and aging? No, that's not true: Most research about the effectiveness and safety of such swabs suggests that they pose no significant threat to most patients. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) posted on TikTok on April 28, 2023. The video…

Does the Chelsea Clinton-endorsed vaccine program "The Big Catch-up" require U.S. children to receive a COVID-19 mRNA immunization? No, that's not true: The program is a global effort to "catch up" on giving recommended childhood vaccines, which declined globally during the 2020 pandemic. The World Health Organization (WHO) told Lead Stories that there are no mandated vaccinations required under this…

Did former Fox News host Tucker Carlson turn down a $30 million offer to host a show on CNN? No, that's not true: This article is satire published by The Dunning-Kruger Times, part of a network of satire sites from America's Last Line of Defense. Although this network offers clear disclaimers that nothing on their websites are true, these stories…

Does a photo on social media depict a Honduran woman named Susana Gonzalez who was the first member of a "caravan" of migrants to be granted asylum in the United States? No, that's not true: This post depicts an old, fake meme that has been recycled online since 2018 by alt-right, conservative online platforms. The woman in the photo is…

Does this video show a large crowd of migrants scaling the fence at the U.S. border with Mexico? No, that's not true: This scene was filmed in North Africa in March 2022 as migrants from sub-Saharan Africa climbed the border fence of the Spanish enclave Melilla in a large coordinated group from the Moroccan side of the barrier. One recent…

Did former President Barack Obama remove half a million pedophiles from government online databases? No, that's not true: The claim refers to changes in criminal record-keeping. The Trump administration issued the memo in February 2017 that more narrowly defined a "fugitive from justice" as a person with an arrest warrant who had also fled state lines. This resulted in 500,000…

Did the World Economic Forum "order" governments "to begin rationing water into homes," proclaiming that access to it is not a human right anymore? No, that's not true: As a non-governmental body, The World Economic Forum (WEF) doesn't have the authority to force independent countries to do anything. The materials cited as proof of the claim, from the March 2023…

Under the RESTRICT Act, would a person be fined up to $1 million and imprisoned for a minimum of 20 years for accessing content on TikTok if it's banned in the United States in the future? Yes, that's partially true: However, none of the legal experts contacted by Lead Stories believe prosecutors would pursue such charges against someone using a…

Was former President Donald Trump photographed wearing a helicopter helmet and a military-style vest? No, that's not true: The image from social media is most likely AI-generated. The claim originated from a tweet (archived here) published on May 1, 2023. It contained what looked like a picture of Trump posted under the caption: This is what a President looks like.…

Does an image showing President Joe Biden using two different hands to sign documents prove that a "body double" is being used for him? No, that's not true: The picture showing him signing with his left hand -- Biden is right-handed and signs documents with his right hand -- is an Associated Press image that has been flipped to make…

Did CNN produce or air a documentary popularizing a baseless conspiracy theory about three cities controlling the world? No, that's not true: A video clip on social media recycled a fragment from a film that, in turn, reused 1997 footage from CNN that included the network's logo. The claim appeared in a clip published on TikTok on April 28, 2023.…

Does a photo that has been circulating online since November 2022 show British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak flashing his bare chest and wearing nothing but a white lab coat and a jockstrap? No, that's not true: This photo cannot be traced back to Sunak and its origin is unknown. It could be a digitally edited or an AI-generated image. The…

Did a public high school in Georgia implement a "business model" assignment in which students had to devise ways of "raising and eating human babies to solve the world hunger problem?" No, that's not true: At two points in a video interview shared to social media, it was stated that the supposed business model was meant as a high school…

Does a clip shared on social media show Democratic congressman Eric Swalwell of California breaking into tears as a result of Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's comments? No, that's not true: The video's title is misleading, and the recording does not contain such an episode. The claim appeared in a post on Facebook on April 21, 2023. It said: Watch…

Does this photo show the aftermath of a bio lab intentionally attacked in Sudan? No, that's not true: The photograph is a screengrab from a video taken by a global news agency on April 20, 2023 days after internal conflict in Sudan's capital began. The World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed to Lead Stories that the National Public Health Laboratory in…

Does a video show a compaction roller demolishing cases of Bud Light beer cans in response to a marketing campaign for the brand featuring transgender social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney? No, that's not true: The video shows thousands of beer cans being destroyed in February 2023 -- weeks before the Mulvaney-Bud Light campaign was introduced. The implied claim is that…

Does a TV interview with international affairs analyst Gilbert Doctorow prove that a Russian hypersonic missile "killed 200 NATO generals, including at least 20 or 30 high-ranking American officers"? No, that's not true: Doctorow doesn't offer any evidence to support his assertion other than an indefinite reference to "The Russians." The U.S. Department of Defense responded to this with: "This…

Does a video shared on social media show Sudan Rapid Forces (SRF) troops in control of "Khartoum International Airport and Military base"? No, that's not true: The video appeared online three months before fighting broke in Sudan in mid-April 2023. Lead Stories geolocated the footage: It was recorded outside the airport in a park typically used for recreational purposes and…