Conspiracy And Children

Does a video featuring actor Tom Hanks prove he is linked to a Hollywood child trafficking conspiracy? No, that's not true: The video is a clip of Hanks acting in a skit that aired on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" in 2011. The social media account that made the claim describes itself as satirical. The claim appeared on Instagram on January 4,…

Is former U.S. President Barack Obama the grandson of Nazi-era Germany's leader Adolf Hitler? No, that's not true: U.S. census data and Obama's birth certificate show that his mother, Ann Dunham, was born in Kansas in 1942 to American parents. She was not born in Germany to Hitler and his then-girlfriend, Eva Braun, as a social media post alleges. The…

Did the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, commonly known as Harry and Meghan, accidentally release a professional photo that was so badly edited that it revealed that their "invisible" daughter Lilibet is not a real child? No, that's not true: This clickbait headline plays off a conspiracy trope that Meghan's pregnancies and children are not real. There is no indication…

Were there zero influenza cases worldwide in 2021 because flu cases were fraudulently recorded as COVID-19 cases? No, that's not true: Since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in March 2020, flu cases have been categorized separately from COVID by national and international surveillance programs. Global flu cases significantly decreased during the 2020-2021 flu season -- in large part due…

Did 80 Canadian doctors die after being vaccinated for COVID-19? No, that's not true: As of December 12, 2022, there had been no COVID vaccine caused deaths - of doctors or non-doctors - in Canada, according to the national public health agency. The claim was made with no evidence that the vaccines caused any physician deaths. Publicly available information shows…

Did the U.S. military arrest "several Deep Staters" who attended President Joe Biden's state dinner with French President Emmanuel Macron on December 1, 2022? No, that's not true: The U.S. military is not allowed to arrest civilians. This claim comes from Real Raw News, a website that regularly produces fabricated headlines and articles. The claim appeared in an article published…

Was "even the media" prosecuted during the 1945-46 Nuremberg trials of Nazi Germany's leadership and "put to death for lying to the public"? No, that's not true: This claim misrepresents the purpose of these historical legal proceedings, which set a precedent for holding individuals accountable for crimes against humanity. As the archives show, even those defendants who had a history…

Does the movie "Died Suddenly" demonstrate that COVID-19 vaccinations cause widespread sudden death or severe medical outcomes? No, that's not true: The film recycles previously debunked claims that the vaccine is lethal or dangerous for the average person receiving it. More than 5.45 billion people have been vaccinated worldwide and public health experts recommend immunization against the virus, saying it…

Is Seattle billionaire Bill Gates now chairman of the Maricopa County, Arizona Board of Supervisors? No, that's not true: A representative for Maricopa County told Lead Stories that a different Bill Gates serves Maricopa County. Gates the billionaire and villain of many conspiracy theories, is a longtime resident of Seattle, where the company he co-founded, Microsoft, is headquartered. The claim…

Did children read words predicting the 9/11 attack "moments before" planes hit the World Trade Center as then-President George W. Bush sat with the children in a Sarasota, Florida, schoolroom? No, that's not true: An online claim to that effect distorts the facts by manipulating the timeline and changing the content of the lesson to fit the narrative. The claim…