Canada

Was a "ritual" tape showing actor Will Smith and rapper Sean "Diddy" Combs having sex leaked in September 2024? No, that's not true: There is no evidence that a sex tape of Smith and Diddy exists. The post that made this claim offered no proof that it does. No actual news websites have published anything about a leaked tape showing…

Does an audio recording of a call to authorities in Springfield, Ohio, confirm that Haitians were hunting geese in Ohio illegally? No, that's not true: An investigation by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources didn't find any evidence of wildlife illegally removed from a park. "No supporting evidence to verify the claim was found," the Ohio Department said in a…

Did social-media posts share the true story of a 32-year-old man named Kyle Thomas, for whom "a silver alert" was issued after he reportedly "went missing" in Omaha, Nebraska? No, that's not true: As of this writing, Nebraska had not issued a missing-persons alert for a person named Kyle Thomas. The posts about "Kyle Thomas" are part of a scam…

Did Whoopi Goldberg vow to go with basketball star Brittney Griner if she leaves the United States? No, that's not true: Lead Stories found no evidence that Goldberg or Griner ever publicly said in 2024 that they would leave the country. The website that published this says in its disclaimer it takes no responsibility for any errors. The claim appeared…

Do two reels posted to Facebook authentically show clips of tornadoes that occurred in Dubai and Canada? No, that's not true: Experts told Lead Stories that the twisters shown in the clips were fake and 100 percent AI-generated content. There are prominent elements in the videos that indicate manipulation and editing have been used to create them. One claim originated…

Did the Toronto Star, BBC and other major media cover a scandal involving Canadian politician Jagmeet Singh that supposedly "erupted" after he left his microphone on while on TV? No, that's not true: Searches for coverage of this supposed money-making scandal on these news sites led to no results. The post on X that said this linked to a fake…

Does a video show an Olympic Games athlete vomit as a direct result of swimming in Paris' Seine? No, that's not true: The athlete shown throwing up after his triathlon faulted the Parisian heat rather than the Seine. Although the river's water quality was poor in the days preceding the triathlon, there is no evidence that it caused Olympic athletes…

Does an old photo show Vice President Kamala Harris practicing prostitution? No, that's not true: The professional photographer who took this shot in New York City told Lead Stories that the young Black woman in the picture was not Harris. Also, news reports with photos of Harris in the 1980s showed that she did not resemble the woman in the…

Did the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation publish an article that suggested offering Medical Assistance in Dying, also known as MAID, to "angry young men with no prospects" to combat "growing ideological extremism"? No, that's not true: CBC confirmed to Lead Stories that the news outlet did not publish such a story. The image in the post on X included a photo…

Does a video montage of clips contain authentic footage of Hurricane Beryl striking Texas on July 7, 2024? No, that's not true: Lead Stories connected nine of the clips to storms in Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Florida and Canada, but not Texas. There's no evidence linking the collection of 13 short clips to the Category 1 hurricane that made landfall in…