Lia Thomas

Has the U.S. government "finally" admitted that marijuana kills cancer cells? No, that's not true. A paper published by the government's National Institutes of Health concluded that while "cannabis and its derivatives may help to alleviate disease and therapy-related symptoms, there is no clinical evidence of its anti-cancer efficacy." There is no "admission" to the contrary. The claim appears as…

Did almost 20,000 fake IDs seized by Customs and Border Protection officers in Chicago turn out to be for fake names registered to vote Democrat? No, that is not true: While customs investigators seized 19,888 fake ID cards in the first half of 2020, the agency never suggested that these IDs are part of a voter fraud scheme. Voter registration…

Does a "leaked" Jeffrey Esptein flight log show a list of celebrities, including Beyonce, Chrissy Teigen and Barack Obama, having flown on his plane nicknamed "Lolita Express?" No, that's not true. A list of 125 people circulating on social media claims A-list celebrities like Oprah Winfrey, Charlie Sheen, Steven Spielberg, Madonna and politicians were on Epstein's flight logs and went…

Can a shopper at Walmart opt out of wearing a protective face mask by presenting a numbered reference code at the door? No. The nation's largest retailer and its affiliate, Sam's Club, on July 15, 2020, issued a "masks-on" rule for all shoppers and employees. The "reference number" posted on social media that would purportedly allow you to opt out…

Do PCR (polymerase chain reaction) tests for coronavirus pierce the blood-brain barrier? No, that's not true: There's no way for a nasal swab to reach the barrier without going through bone, according to a leading public health expert who has studied the Covid-19 virus. The claim appeared as a Facebook post (archived here) on July, 6, 2020. It opened: This…

Is it true that you cannot catch the novel coronavirus, as a viral video suggests? No, that's not true: Viruses are contagious. The video is filled with inaccuracies and medically false information. Lead Stories reached out to a medical doctor in Atlanta who called the video "total garbage." The claims appeared in a post (archived here) published on Facebook by…

Are countries or U.S. states with a high rate of childhood vaccinations the hardest-hit with the novel coronavirus? No, that's not true: In fact, some of the countries with the lowest spread of the virus are those that have higher vaccination rates than the United States. The claim originated in a post (archived here) published on Facebook by Thomas Miller…

Did Fox News win a Pulitzer Prize for its reporting during the coronavirus crisis? Not, that's not true: The claim was made in a post on a site clearly labeled as satire and part of a well-known network of satirical websites that trolls conservatives with fiction to rile up their base. The claim appeared in an article (archived here) published…

Are fish antibiotics the same as human antibiotics and, therefore, perfectly safe for human consumption? No, that's not true: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration warns that drugs shouldn't be shared "between species" because, among other reasons, pet antibiotics aren't evaluated the same way for safety and aren't required to meet the same standards. The claim that the antibiotics are…

Did the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency arrest an undocumented citizen working at California's drivers' license facility who illegally registered thousands of voters? No, that's not true: This claim was published on a satire site and copied and republished by others sites who failed to note the satirical nature of the original. This did not happen. ICE made no…