Entertainment

Does a video circulating on social media show a real-life arrest of a woman "in her own garden for growing lettuce"? No, that's not true: The video originated from an account, Bodycam Declassified, that publishes video skits mimicking police bodycam footage. The timestamp in the clip doesn't match the format for this particular type of recording device seen on the…

Was a viral picture of Donald Trump kissing a young female model authentic? No, that's not true: A comparison with the original photos from a Guardian article shows that the image was digitally manufactured. The details of the background and the outfit of another woman present in the frame didn't match authentic stills. The claim appeared in a post (archived…

Did Atlanta Braves Manager Brian Snitker adopt an orphaned baby named "Pinky" who was rescued from the July Texas flood? No, that's not true: Photos of Snitker cradling an infant and the text of a story claiming he adopted the "poor, shivering newborn" were all generated by artificial intelligence tools and shared on a fake baseball fan page administered from…

Did a viral video authentically show a woman being pulled high into the air by a hot air balloon after her foot got stuck in a rope? No, that's not quite true: The footage was not digitally edited or AI-generated, but it did not show a real, dangerous accident. Rather, it was a controlled stunt used by a French circus…

Is Paige Bueckers 0-4 in collegiate and WNBA games that match her up against Caitlin Clark, as a social media post claims? No, that's not true: Bueckers and the University of Connecticut Huskies defeated Clark and the University of Iowa Hawkeyes 92-72 in the 2021 NCAA tournament. At the time the claim was posted, Clark and the Indiana Fever had…

Did a viral story about singer Robert Plant donating $1.5 million to Texas flood victims come from a reliable source? No, that's not true: The article appeared on a clickbait site that published several other fake stories about celebrity donations in the recent past. Even though the story claimed there were "no cameras or press crews" it was illustrated with…

Does a viral photo authentically show Beyonce wearing a tank top with a Star of David while having an Israeli flag draped over her arms? No, that's not true: The image has been digitally manipulated based on an older original. The original picture shows no such tank top and shows red, white and blue tassels hanging from the singer's arms.…

Did President Donald Trump post on his Truth Social account that he was "giving serious consideration to taking away" Rosie O'Donnell's citizenship? Yes, that's true: The message appeared on Trump's Truth Social account at approximately 10 a.m. Eastern Time on Saturday, July 12, 2025. The post was still visible at the time of writing, about two hours later. The president…

Was Monkee Micky Dolenz rushed to a Los Angeles hospital after a tragic accident following a visit to Texas flood victims? No, that's not true: Dolenz posted a video on his Facebook page asking fans to ignore and not share posts making the claim. Lead Stories co-founder Alan Duke -- the writer of this fact check -- personally talked to…

Does a viral video really show a woman falling over and dropping a large rock on a glass bridge full of tourists, collapsing it? No, that's not true: The video originated on the account of "Stjepan Covic", who describes himself as an AI "Creator". The description of the video had a disclaimer indicating it was "created with artificial intelligence for…

Did the rapper Jelly Roll release a new song called "Angels Don't Pack Their Bags", as a tribute to the victims of devastating flooding in parts of Texas, in July 2025? No, that's not true: We found no trace of any new song, of any name, on Jelly Roll's official website or social media accounts. A widely-shared blog post contained…

Did rock guitarist Eric Clapton announce he would pay funeral expenses for the families of those killed in devastating flooding in parts of Texas, in July 2025? No, that's not true: We found no corroboration for a blog post that was shared widely and also claimed Clapton would be providing other forms of compensation. Social media posts supposedly praising Clapton…

Did Eminem donate $50 million "for Texas Flood Victims" and travel to any sites impacted by the natural disaster? No, that's not true: No credible media organizations reported that, as of July 7, 2025. The AI-generated text of the claim was initially published by a website that, according to its self-description, offers services "with all faults and defects without warranty…

Did the country music singer George Strait donate $3.5 million to help recovery efforts after devastating flooding in parts of Texas, in July 2025? No, that's not true: We found no corroboration for a blog post that was shared widely and also claimed Strait joined a volunteer crew in aid efforts. A statement attributed to Strait was completely fabricated, and…

Did crowds at Glastonbury boo and sing "God Save the King", drowning out a performance by Irish hip-hop group Kneecap, in June 2025? No, that's not true: A widely-shared video used audio from a different source to give the false impression that British festival-goers defied the band's Irish republican and pro-Palestinian messages. In fact, the original clip showed a soundbite…

Did WWE issue an announcement saying that a World Wrestling Entertainment event scheduled for June 28, 2025, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, "will proceed as planned"? No, that's not true: What looked like a statement from the organization was first published on meme and satire pages. As of this writing, WWE hadn't cancelled the event, but also hadn't confirmed that its…

Did basketball team Indiana Fever sign up Gertrud Schlaghammer to protect star player Caitlin Clark? No, that's not true: The announcement about the "former Olympic Greco Roman wrestling silver medalist and ex-German special forces operative" was posted on a Facebook page dedicated to sports satire. There was no such announcement on the actual Indiana Fever X account, despite the fake…

Did Paul McCartney give his private jet to a WW2 vet to help the 102-year-old American reunite with his wartime lover? No, that's not true: The text and supporting images in a story making the claim were generated by artificial intelligence tools. There is no documentation that the former Beatle lent his plane to an elderly veteran for a flight…

Did Disney and Playboy announce in June 2025 that they would be collaborating to produce a special $50 edition of the magazine? No, that's not true: The claim originated on Mouse Trap News, which describes its output as "satire and parody". We found no evidence to suggest that the rumor was even inadvertently true. The claim appeared in a June…

Did a New York State judge order Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to surrender her tax returns and financials? No, that's not true: That yarn appeared on an account labelled "Satire/Parody", which warns readers that everything on the page is made up. There's no record of such a case on Google News' index of thousands of news sites, and with intense interest…