Did the White House set up a fake scene to deceive the public about President Joe Biden's COVID-19 booster shot? No, that's not true: The White House was clear about where the scene was shot, namely the South Court Auditorium of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, which is on the grounds of the White House complex but in a different building. The space is frequently used for events, including, recently, a virtual global COVID-19 summit.
The claim appeared in an article (archived here) published by The True Reporter on September 29, 2021, titled: "Joe Biden Took His Booster Shot On A 'Set' Of A Fake 'White House.'" As its source, the article cited the website of Wayne Dupree, who published a similar article with the exact same title. The True Reporter article read:
They gave us these photos of Biden and wanted us to believe that he really took the booster in the White House. Oh my God... They set up a White House scene!
Users on social media saw this at the time of writing:
"Joe Biden got his booster shot on a fake White House set..." - Sophie O'Hara
-- Wayne Dupree Media, LLC (@WayneDupreeShow) September 30, 2021
https://t.co/DSEwe8qFrq
There is no publicly available evidence to support the claim that "they," presumably the White House, intended to trick the public into thinking that Biden got his COVID booster in the White House. There is also no support for the article's implied claim that the White House set up a fake scene for the purpose of staging his booster shot.
First, the White House was explicit about where the event took place. The location is listed on Biden's public remarks, as can be seen here. Furthermore, the event was attended by members of the media and by C-SPAN, whose video caption clearly states the location as the Eisenhower Executive Office Building.
Second, the scene that the article questioned was not set up for the purpose of Biden getting his booster shot. It is a familiar scene. The same backdrop -- blue walls, white columns and windows -- was used during a recent global COVID summit, held on September 22, 2021. You can watch video of that virtual event here. The South Court Auditorium is frequently used for news events, as can be seen here, here and here.
The article's claims sit comfortably within conspiracy theories around Biden being photo edited into presidential offices and backgrounds as he is not really the president. Lead Stories has debunked those claims before, finding that video of Biden talking to the press on the White House lawn did not reveal a "green screen fail" and that a photograph of the Oval Office did not prove it is a "film set" and not in the White House.
