Russia

Did a video show an Indian drone falling to the ground and causing an explosion, after being shot down by Pakistani forces in May 2025? No, that's not true: The video had been online since April 29, one week before India struck locations in Pakistan in response to a terrorist attack by Pakistani militants, and Pakistan, in response, shot down…

Does a viral video show "Pakistan F-16 jets" shot down by India in April 2025? No, that's not true: Social media posts recycled old footage from 2024. When it was initially uploaded online, the captions discussed a Russian-made Sukhoi fighter jet crash, not a military operation using American made F-16 jets. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) on…

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 Statista publish a graph detailing the nationalities of the people described as "mercenaries" who fought for Ukraine and were killed in the Kursk region of Russia? No, that's not true: The data on the Statista website doesn't show the graph shared on social media. Unlike authentic charts published by that company, the graph omitted the source of the figures…

Did the BBC report that Ukraine's First Lady Olena Zelenska tried to escape to Europe and was put under the guard of the national Security Service when the attempt failed? No, that's not true: In a statement to Lead Stories, a BBC spokesperson refuted the claim, referring to the viral video as "fabricated content that impersonates the BBC." No credible…

Does a genuine transcript show what Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said after Representative Jim Himes asked a question about retweeting "posts from individuals affiliated with Russian state media" using her personal account? No, that's not true: The fake transcript starts off with things that were actually said but then adds more questions from a "reporter" who wasn't actually…

Did Vogue magazine publish an article on March 21, 2025, with the headline "Disney Confirms Russian Troll Farms At Heart of Bad Snow White Opening Weekend"? No, that's not true: a fake screenshot shared online was the result of digital manipulation, and used a different Vogue article as its basis. The fake screenshot attributed the invented headline to a non-existent…

Did a video circulating on social media show Russian President Vladimir Putin making a public statement about Russia's terms for a ceasefire in Ukraine in March 2025? No, that's not true: The clip had been online for nine months. It showed Putin's remarks from June 2024. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published on X on March 12,…

Is Nate Vance -- who criticized the Trump administration's reduction of support for Ukraine's defense against Russia's invasion -- Vice President JD Vance's cousin? Yes, that's true: Nate Vance is the first cousin of JD Vance. His father, Jim Vance, is the brother of JD Vance's mother, Beverly. Nate Vance detailed the family connection on social media, and online records…

Did Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy buy the French bank Milleis in February 2025 using the offshore company Maltex? No, that's not true: No credible media organization reported this story, as of March 6, 2025. A viral video purporting to be a TV news report about it displayed a non-existent TV channel logo. And the video contained inauthentic, AI-generated audio, according…