Masks

Were there eight presidents of the United States before George Washington and did several Black presidents serve before Barack Obama was elected in 2008? No, that's not true: Washington was the first elected American president. There is a lack of historical evidence; plus, examples of genealogical research and, more recently, DNA testing that show no president prior to Obama was…

Did a Pfizer representative "admit" the company erred when its COVID-19 vaccine was "never tested on preventing transmission" of the virus during clinical trials? No, that's not true. Vaccine clinical trials for drug approval are not meant to test that. Clinical trials are intended to check the safety and efficacy of new drugs and vaccines before they are approved for…

Is Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, the American wife of Britain's Prince Harry, "a clone or robot"? No, that's not true: The videos repeating this claim borrowed footage from the 2018 Madam Tussaud's live figures events, when actors put on latex masks to impersonate the real couple. The claim about the former Meghan Markle resurfaced in a TikTok video (archived here)…

Did a study find potentially disease-causing bacteria and fungi on face masks? Yes, that's true, but the study's authors only made one recommendation based on their findings and that was for immunocompromised people to avoid repeated use of masks to prevent infections. In an email to Lead Stories, study author Ah-Mee Park, an associate professor in the Department of Microbiology…

Are gyms locked down and are people forced to wear masks to stop the spread of monkeypox? No, that's not true: There have been no federal government orders as of July 27, 2022, for gyms to be closed or mask mandated to stop the spread of monkeypox. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) does recommend that people who…

Is it always "possible to get through TSA with your water, as long as it's living electrically reduced water" or "medical grade water"? Not necessarily: A spokesperson for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) told Lead Stories that even if a person identifies water at a checkpoint as medically necessary water and passes an explosives test, the transportation security officer (TSO)…

Does an election night correction made to a private company's Colorado vote tallies prove the primary election was manipulated by dark forces? No, that's not true: There is no evidence the official results "stole" votes from Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters to increase the total for another GOP secretary of state candidate during the June 28, 2021, primary election in…

Does a video show students serving a lawsuit at a Virginia school board meeting? No, that's not true: Although students did present a so-called "affidavit" disputing the Loudoun County Public Schools mask mandate to the Loudoun County School Board during a meeting, the document did not represent any legitimate legal action against the board. The claim appeared in a video…

Do many media outlets recycle old photos of monkeypox lesions when reporting on current or past outbreaks of monkeypox? Does this indicate that there have not been any new cases of monkeypox found and the reporting is not factual? No, that's not true: It is common practice for media outlets to use stock photos. The screenshots in this claim do…

Did an official study conclude that masks caused more COVID-19? No, that's not true: This is not an official study by a government or medical organization. It is a study written by an individual, Beny Spira, an associate professor of microbiology at the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil. Also, the conclusions section of his report says, "no cause-effect conclusions…