Qanon

Does a social media video show a "transhuman" baby from parents who received the COVID-19 vaccine? No, that's not true: The mother of the baby shown in the video post told Lead Stories that her daughter was born in August 2020, before the COVID vaccines were available. The Pfizer shot was first approved under emergency use authorization on December 11,…

Does a social media video show a U.S. patent for harvesting adrenochrome from humans? No, that's not true: 3M, the holder of the patent shown, #4,501,923, told Lead Stories that the license "does not describe or suggest harvesting adrenochrome from a human," but, instead, "describes making adrenochrome in four different ways ..." Adrenochrome is a chemical compound that's a byproduct…

Are Pope Francis, the late Queen Elizabeth II and U.S. President Joe Biden members of the same family? No, that's not true: There is no evidence supporting this online rumor, which recycles a 24-year-old conspiracy theory. The claim appeared in a post on Instagram on October 14, 2022. The caption says: I KNOW SOME WEIRD SHIT WHEN I SEE SOME…

Did Fox News revisit a "theory" about a "huge Trump and military white hat sting operation" in 12 states about the 2020 U.S. presidential election? Did this include a statement that the Biden family, elected officials, bureaucrats, social media managers and media members "are being arrested & detained for ballot fraud" and will face "military tribunals" off the coast of…

Was an American flag with no stars behind former President Donald Trump at a rally and does such a flag mean those that refuse to surrender will face "total annihilation"? No, that's not true: The lighting in the image may appear to be obscuring the stars but multiple photographs from news sites and photo agencies from the rally where the…

Does a "newly leaked report" from the RAND Corporation, a U.S. think tank, reveal the "true motives behind European Destabilization & The Russia/Ukraine War"? No, that's not true: In an email to Lead Stories and a news release on its website, the RAND Corp. called the "supposedly leaked" report "fake." The claim appeared in the September 12, 2022, issue of…

Is the CERN physics laboratory powered by child sacrifices or human blood? No, that's not true: There's no evidence that the lab, which is often referred to as the European Laboratory for Particle Physics, is being powered by anything other than the French electrical grid. In an August 17, 2022, email to Lead Stories the agency said, "CERN is powered…

Does a video show children being saved from a human trafficker who may have been selling them for adrenochrome? No, that's not true: The video shows children being taken out of a truck by authorities after trying to leave a Syrian displacement camp and is not related to the QAnon adrenochrome conspiracy theory. The claim appeared in a video posted…

Was former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe assassinated because he didn't follow World Economic Forum (WEF) orders, didn't mandate COVID-19 vaccines, sent 1.6 million doses back and gave citizens ivermectin? No, that's not true: There's no evidence any of those things -- some of which didn't happen -- played a role in his shooting death on July 8, 2022. The…

By Uliana Malashenko Does a video of Ukrainian soldiers captured by the Russian army prove that their Ukrainian counterparts were killing civilians in Rubizhne, a town in the Luhansk region in eastern Ukraine, in spring 2022? No, that's not true: The words of the POWs are not supported by any visual evidence or documents. Not a single reputable source in…