Isolated

Did the United Kingdom send a "'Robot Royal Force' 🇬🇧 Type-C robot" to help Ukraine with the war in July 2023? No, that's not true: There was no information or credible report online to corroborate the claim that the United Kingdom sent or would send a "'Robot Royal Force' Type-C robot" to help Ukraine following Russia's military invasion. Also, animation…

Does the music video "Try That In A Small Town" by country music singer Jason Aldean only contain "real news footage," as he asserted in a public response to criticism that his song and video promote violence and allude to timeworn lynching threats? No, that's not true: Not every clip in the video is news footage. There are several stock…

Is lab-grown meat cultivated using cancerous or pre-cancerous animal cells? No, that's not true: Cell-cultured meat is cultivated using animal cells that have been modified to replicate indefinitely. Cell-cultured or lab-grown meat is regulated in the U.S. under the same stipulations as conventionally grown and slaughtered meat, poultry, and seafood. Furthermore, regulatory agencies do not allow for cancerous animal meat…

Do the people of the Hunza Valley in northern Pakistan never get cancer because they consume apricot seeds? No, that's not true: There are recorded cases of cancer among the people of the Hunza Valley that date back several decades and there is no evidence that apricot seeds prevent cancer. In fact, the seeds can actually be harmful. The claim…

Do patents related to the diseases AIDS, SARS, Zika and Ebola prove that they were man-made? No, that's not true: Three of the patents cited are associated with those diseases but they are not for the creation or invention of them. There is no mention in any of the patents that indicates the applicants fabricated the viruses. The Zika virus…

Does the pavana leaf treat cancer? No, that's not true: A surgical oncologist told Lead Stories that there is no medical evidence supporting that claim. The FDA warns consumers to be wary of products that claim to treat cancer. The implied claim appeared on Facebook (archived here) where it was published on March 27, 2023, with the on-screen text reading,…

Was the "Teletubbies" television show based on a story of four psychotic children who purportedly were abused and who ultimately died horrifying deaths in a mental health institution? No, that's not true: The creators of the show said they were inspired by astronauts from the moon landing in creating their characters and by British comedians. The claim appeared in a…

Is Mickey Mouse "clearly massaging his massive erection" in a video described on social media as an "old @Disney reel"? No, that's not true: A former Disney animator called the short clip a "forgery." The NSFW video takes isolated character elements from the 1928 Disney cartoon "Steamboat Willie" and combines them with new animation to create something that looks like…

Do gene editing mRNA vaccine patent holders own vaccinated people outright once injected, and does mRNA alter natural human DNA? No, that's not true: A Stanford University professor of law specializing in bioethics told Lead Stories that these claims are "too absurd even to be wrong." Also, many credible medical organizations have debunked the claim that mRNA vaccines alter the…

Did British naturalist Charles Darwin, best known for his contributions to the evolutionary theory in biology, who died in 1882, predict "the rise of The Woke," a modern-day slang term frequently used by the opponents of those raising awareness of social and racial issues? No, that's not true. Lead Stories performed numerous searches on Google, Yahoo, Bing, Yandex and Google…