Russia

Did Bill Gates, Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist, publicly say in January 2025 that he "will leave the USA if the Epstein Client List is released"? No, that's not true: Lead Stories found no credible reports to support Gates' supposed announced departure. Court materials detailing Jeffrey Epstein's contacts were made public in January 2024. Neither Gates nor any reputable news organization…

Does a video show a long line of military trucks in Texas hauling tanks to the U.S. southern border in response to an executive order signed by President Donald Trump declaring a national emergency in 2025? No, that's not true: The video dates back to August 2024 and does not show events in the U.S. The footage shows a military…

Does U.S. law allow for Dr. Anthony Fauci to be extradited to Russia? No, that's not true: A notoriously unreliable website that published a story about Putin supposedly demanding such an extradition did not offer any named sources or specifics regarding alleged charges. Lawyers who specialize in extradition told Lead Stories that there's no legal basis to send an American…

Does a video authentically show Vladimir Putin going "past world leaders to shake Trump's hand"? No, that's not true: The version of the clip that went viral in the days leading up to Trump's second inauguration in January 2025 was edited to remove several key frames documenting one of the 2018 events commemorating the end of World War I. Multiple…

Has Oprah Winfrey died as of January 17, 2025, as implied by viral social media posts? No, that's not true: An article attached to a post implying that Winfrey died did not provide evidence of her supposed death nor mention anywhere in the article text that she had died. Winfrey was active on her verified social media accounts the same…

Does a video show the "son of a famous Ukrainian prosecutor" who "was spotted in Monaco enjoying his car" during the Russian-Ukrainian war in January 2025? No, that's not true: Lead Stories analysis showed that neither the date, place or identity of the person matched the clip's description. The video was recorded in Florida in 2023 and showed a Ukrainian…

Did a post on Facebook confirm that actor Chuck Norris died in a "fatal car accident" in January 2025? No, that's not true: Norris' attorney told Lead Stories that the post was "not correct" and that he had spoken with Norris the day this article was written. Images seen in the post on Facebook had been digitally altered to appear…

Did President-elect Donald Trump post a map of Finland on Truth Social? No, that's not true: A manual review of his account did not show such an entry as of this writing, January 14, 2025. The map in question did not correctly reflect current Finnish borders nor those in the year seen in the image. The claim appeared in a…

Did the Ukrainian government state that "eight mansions owned by Ukrainian military officials" were "burned down in wildfires in Los Angeles" in January 2025? No, that's not true: A video that made this assertion contained the logo of United24, the official fundraising platform of the Ukrainian government. A United24 spokesperson and Ukraine's Center for Countering Disinformation said this video is…

Is it true that there was no Alzheimer's disease until 1979 -- after the vegetable oils used in margarine were incorporated widely in modern diets? No, that's not true: In 1906 the "unusual disease of the cerebral cortex" was discovered by pathologist Alois Alzheimer. The abnormal brain atrophy he had identified was named after him four years later. An expert…