Weather

Did an image shared widely in July 2025 show an authentic screenshot of a German weather forecast? No, that's not true: The image was edited to make it more dramatic. No lava appeared in the original footage. The claim appeared in a June 30, 2025, post on X (archived here). It read: Jeeeeezus, if you think the climate propaganda is…

Did a widely-shared image provide an authentic record of Niagara Falls turning "blood red" in June 2025? No, that's not true: The image was first posted by a Facebook page that regularly posts fictional content and AI-generated images. A spokesperson for the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation confirmed that the story and image were "not…

Does a video shared on social platforms show an authentic Arctic woolly snake discovered by researchers in Antarctica? No, that's not true: The video was created by an artificial intelligence tool, not by a camera that recorded real people handling a real creature, according to an AI detection tool used by Lead Stories. A search online for information about the…

Were people in Kentucky not warned ahead of the May 16, 2025 tornado that killed more than 20 people in the southeastern part of the state? No, that's not true: The National Weather Service issued warnings two days ahead. Multiple state officials, including Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear, have said there's no evidence the National Weather Service tornado warnings were delayed…

Did U.S. gas prices drop below $1.98 a gallon as President Trump claimed in a May 2, 2025 Truth Social post? No, that's not true: The national average for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline was $3.18 on May 2, 2025, according to the AAA survey. The cheapest gas was in Mississippi, where the average price for regular unleaded was…

At the press briefing during his visit to Pituffik Space Base in Greenland, was the casually-dressed Vice President JD Vance asked "Why don't you wear a suit?", as a TikTok video makes it sound? No, that's not true: The TikTok clip combines authentic video from Vance's March 28, 2025 Greenland visit with authentic audio from a February 28, 2025 White…

Does a video clip capture what was happening inside an Air India plane that was forced to return to Chicago on March 5, 2025, due to out-of-order toilets? No, that's not true: The video predates the incident by two months. It started circulating on social media in early January 2025. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published on…

Does the story that Oprah Winfrey is now the largest land owner in Western North Carolina come from an actual news source? No, that's not true: An image meme that said she "bought out hundreds of families" for "pennies on the dollar" originated on a Facebook page with a satire disclaimer. The owner of the page is known for tricking…

Does a video authentically show a wooden cross being installed in the Oval Office? No, that's not true: A viral video captioned "Trump becomes 1st sitting U.S. President to install a cross in the Oval Office" showed some traces of being generated using AI according to detection tools. The video also contains artifacts like a worker blending through a wooden…

Did USAID place a real ad reading "Help Eliminate Elon" on a street in Washington, D.C., in February 2025? No, that's not true: As Capital Bikeshare, the owner of the bike stand ad box, stopped selling ads in April 2024 it would be an unauthorized posting, according to the person who was last in charge of selling the ads. Artist…