Politics

Did British naturalist Charles Darwin, best known for his contributions to the evolutionary theory in biology, who died in 1882, predict "the rise of The Woke," a modern-day slang term frequently used by the opponents of those raising awareness of social and racial issues? No, that's not true. Lead Stories performed numerous searches on Google, Yahoo, Bing, Yandex and Google…

Is the man presented as "John Fetterman's doctor" in a post about the U.S. senator's condition a doctor? No, that's not true: He is porn actor Jonny Sins and the post is the latest version of spoofs in which Sins, who plays a doctor in films, is presented as an actual medical doctor. The claim, along with a photo of…

Did Twitter make a rule that users may not display the flag of Ukraine on their profile because it is considered a political statement against Russia? No, that's not true: A post from Walter Report contained a fabricated image which appeared to be a screenshot of a notification from Twitter. A day later, Walter Report published a notice that this…

Was Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, the first time 100,000 troops had invaded another country since World War II? No, that's not true: There are many examples of military forces totaling more than 100,000 invading other countries since the end of the Second World War in 1945. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) posted…

Was a 19-year-old girl in Texas sentenced to "96 years in prison" after traveling across state lines to gain access to an abortion procedure? No, that's not true: The social media account that shared this post is a satirical one. Furthermore, Texas law enforcement officials did not publicly announce such an arrest and conviction, and no reputable media outlet covered…

Can the Alaska-based HAARP project, a former military research facility for studying the ionosphere, remotely initiate natural disasters such as earthquakes anywhere on Earth? No, that's not true: An "explanation" of its purported capabilities to manufacture disasters, posted on social media, contradicts well-established scientific facts. The manager of the HAARP project told Lead Stories that the facility "cannot create or…

Was there an uptick in industrial fires in the U.S. in early 2023, indicating that the country is "under attack"? No, that's not true: Annually, there are between 2,600 and 3,100 structure fires in industrial properties in the U.S., according to 2016-2020 data from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), a U.S.-based international fire safety nonprofit. When compared with data…

Did Pope Francis say that pedophiles have a special place in heaven? No, that's not true: There is no record of Pope Francis saying that, as an article in NewsPunch claims. Other quotes in this article are real quotes from the pope that were taken out of context and their meaning reversed. The article was published by NewsPunch on February…

Did the United States, Germany and other Western countries pull their ambassadors out of Turkey 24 hours before the February 6, 2023, earthquake that killed tens of thousands there? No, that's not true: Diplomatic representatives from the United States, Germany, Canada and the Netherlands confirmed to Lead Stories that their ambassadors were in Turkey at the time of the quake.…

Was the "REAL" Epstein list leaked on the dark web? No, that's not true: The article that made the claim in the headline offered no evidence and zero proof in the body of the story that a list belonging to convicted pedophile Jeffery Epstein was found on the dark web. A list on the dark web was not mentioned once…

Did Walmart sell eggs for "illegal prices" and are $500 store credits being given to customers to "make it up"? No, that's not true: There is no evidence that Walmart sold eggs at illegally high prices nor is there any evidence of consumers being able to get $500 in store credit from the world's largest retailer as compensation. The claim…

Did liberal billionaire philanthropist George Soros endorse Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for the Republican nomination in the 2024 presidential race? No, that's not true: In remarks to the Munich Security Conference in February 2023, Soros said DeSantis is "likely to be a Republican candidate," but he didn't say he was endorsing the Sunshine State's governor or wanted him to run.…

Did KFC tweet for Black History Month a photo of a chicken drumstick in front of a drumstick shadow that looks like a raised fist? No, that's not true: KFC's U.S. corporate account never posted this image, which has been altered. The Instagram account for KFC Trinidad and Tobago, part of the restaurant's international franchise network, tweeted the image in…

Is "Little Red Riding Hood" banned in America? No, that's not true: And neither are assault weapons. Only nine of the 50 states have banned assault weapons. Two school districts did ban a specific version of the book in 1990 because the protagonist was shown carrying a wine bottle, but one of them is claiming in 2023 to have never…

Did the city of Atlanta ban the word "women" across all public platforms in favor of the phrase "birthing persons"? No, there's no evidence that's true: Spokespeople for the Atlanta City Council told Lead Stories they had no knowledge of such a ban and that no such legislation has been approved. Additionally, official social media accounts continue at the time…

Can "illegal immigrants" be police officers in California? No, that's not true: Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law that allowed non-citizens who are legally authorized to work in the U.S. to become police officers. There are no citizenship requirements to become a police officer in the state. And federal law prohibits employers from hiring immigrants who are not authorized to…

Is a recording sounding like President Joe Biden telling people to "own a musket for home defense" real? No, that's not true: Although the voice sounds like Biden, video clearly shows he's speaking different words than those heard in the recording. Also, the phrase -- "own a musket for home defense" -- is the start of a well-known copypasta, a…

During his 2023 State of the Union address, did President Joe Biden say, "Capitalism is exploitation"? No, that's not true: The quote and the video it comes from have been edited. Biden said, "Capitalism without competition is exploitation," not "Capitalism is exploitation." Also, the president's altered words came from his State of the Union address about a year earlier in…

Does more than one train derailment a day manifest a dramatic increase compared to the existing national statistics about train accidents? No, that's not true: A video implying that three derailments within a week and a half don't match the ordinary pattern contradicts historic data that has been recorded since the 1970s. The claim originated from a post on Facebook…

Did Lauren Boebert threaten President Joe Biden's life live on stage? No, that's missing context: She did not threaten his life directly, and was speaking in the context of impeachment -- but the Bible verse she quoted in her speech is controversial in how it can be interpreted. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) where it was published…