Health

Does a viral photo show the Altoona McDonald's employee who made the 911 call to report a sighting of Luigi Mangione in Pennsylvania? No, that's not true: The photo shows a comedian from New York. A profile on Facebook that contained the original version of the image also placed that person in New York, not Pennsylvania. The claim appeared in…

Is Barbara O'Neill a medical doctor certified by the American Board of Urology, or ABU? No, that's not true: The American Board of Medical Specialties, which maintains records on medical certifications, told Lead Stories that O'Neill is not certified by the ABU. The American Urological Association also did not find her as a member of their association. Lead Stories independently…

Did Texas ban Pride flags in school classrooms as of December 16, 2024? No, that's not true: This originated from SpaceX Fanclub, a Facebook page with a satire disclaimer: "We post SATIRE, nothing on this page is real." The first comment under the post included a link to the self-described satire website esspots.com. The claim appeared in a post (archived…

Does a video show Luigi Mangione, the man accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, skateboarding? No, that's not true: The video shows Guy Azulay, a musician and skateboarder, who posted the clip on his personal Instagram account. It does not show Mangione, who was arrested on December 9, 2024 in Altoona, Pennsylvania, in Thompson's death in Manhattan on December…

Does a video authentically show people in New York City celebrating the death of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson? No, that's not true: The video was posted online nearly two weeks ahead of the December 4, 2024, shooting death of Thompson in Midtown Manhattan. The video actually shows a street party in New York City after a concert by singer Natasha…

Is Social Security out of money for payouts to be made starting June 1, 2025? No, that's not true: This was implied by a post on Threads that did not cite any official document, did not link to expert analysis or provided no financial records. The Social Security Trust Fund, from which benefits are paid, was solvent on the day…

Did The New York Times publish an opinion article titled, "The Glorification of Luigi Mangione Is Inherently Anti-Israeli"? No, that's not true: A representative of The New York Times told Lead Stories that the organization "did not publish" such a headline. An image on social media showing the "Anti-Israeli" headline appeared to be digitally manipulated, as the original headline by…

Did a man named Brian Thompson from Romford, U.K., die in an ambulance after "anti tax activists" blocked the roads with "Lamborghini tractors"? No, that's not true: The image of the supposedly deceased man on social media was AI generated. In fact, the photo came from the face-generating website This Person Does Not Exist. The claim appeared in a post…

Does a video show UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson talking about working with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi? No, that's not true: The Brian Thompson in the video is a different person. The Thompson in the video is an entrepreneur; the footage is from a speech he gave at a workshop in 2012. The claim appeared in a post (archived here)…

Does nicotine eliminate brain tumors? No, that's not true: A brain cancer expert from the University of Nebraska Medical Center said nicotine doesn't help and may actually reduce a person's chances of recovering from brain tumors or cancer. Nicotine is harmful, addictive and can raise the risk of certain cancers. The claim appeared in a post and video (archived here)…