China

Did CNN broadcast a graphic touting Pakistan's supposed military success against India, including a caption that read "Pakistan Strikes India's Air Defense"? No, that's not true: A CNN spokesperson told Lead Stories it was a "fabricated image". India has denied Pakistan's claims of having inflicted significant damage on their S-400 air defense system. The fake CNN graphic was presented as…

Did a widely-shared video authentically show President Donald Trump speaking in praise of Pakistan's Air Force, and claiming India had "humiliated itself", in the context of May 2025 clashes between the two countries? No, that's not true: The video contained fake audio of Trump's voice making remarks he never did, in reality. The fake voice and conspicuously fake mouth movements…

Does a viral video show an explosion that is possibly a tactical nuclear weapon being used in the 2025 conflict between India and Pakistan? No, that's not true: The footage showing a huge explosion almost engulfing two tall buildings and a construction crane at night was originally filmed in China in 2015. It showed an industrial accident in Tianjin, China.…

Is a video of President Trump threatening to "erase Pakistan" if it attacks India authentic? No, that's not true: The video uses old footage of Trump from before he was President and added an AI generated audio track. In the fake audio Trump can also be heard saying he will "warn China" and that he loves "Indian people". The video…

Did the account of the Chinese Embassy in the U.S. on X post a cartoon depicting U.S. President Donald Trump as having a tariff-related tantrum? No, that's not true: As of this writing, the account's entries did not include that image. Answering Lead Stories' questions, an embassy spokesperson denied that either its official account on X or any other account…

Did Dr. Anthony Fauci petition the State Department for an emergency travel visa to China so he can take up a position at the Wuhan Institute of Virology? No, that's not true: A Facebook post making that claim originated on a Facebook page with a satire disclaimer. The owner of the page is known for tricking conservatives into liking and…

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 U.S. President Donald Trump post a meme of Winnie the Pooh on X to troll China's Xi Jinping in 2025? No, that's not true: Lead Stories manually reviewed Trump's account on X and did not find the image social media alleged he published. No credible media organization reported the purported news. The claim appeared in a post (archived here)…

Did President Donald Trump's economic advisor Peter Navarro once attribute quotations to a supposed expert named "Ron Vara", who turned out to have been invented by Navarro himself? Yes, that's true: Navarro admitted in 2019 to having invented "Ron Vara", which is an anagram of "Navarro". He cited Vara's supposed opinions and quotations in several books dating back to 2001.…

Is there a real Wikipedia page titled "Great Leap Backward" describing the opening months of President Trump's second term? No, that's not true: A screenshot of such a page appears to have been created by digitally editing the page about China's "Great Leap Forward" during Chairman Mao's rule. Searches on Wikipedia and Google did not bring up such a page…