Society

Does a viral video of a protester chanting "No queso! No cheese!" before being sprayed with orange-colored gas by law enforcement show a real-life scene? No, that's not true: A prominent watermark identified the video as having been generated by a specific AI tool. Visual artifacts indicate it was AI-generated, including faceless people in military fatigues and several examples of…

Is the viral video of a young woman wondering what an ice cream truck is doing out and about at 1 a.m. the last video she ever posted? No, that's not true: After posting that video August 19, 2025, she posted a related video August 21. On August 23, she posted another TikTok video about the ice cream truck and…

Does authentic video show U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detaining cats and dogs, as of October 9, 2025? No, that's not true: Viral clips showing cats and dogs being seized were products of generative AI. Their early versions displayed a removable watermark pointing to a specific app. They originated as online satire. The claim appeared in a post (archived here)…

Did a man with a T-shirt cannon fire a prize directly at an elderly woman seated in the stands, knocking her over? No, that's not true: This video is AI-generated. It was created for a satirical Facebook page, Weaber Valley Speedway, which publishes fake updates and event footage as if they are a real small town racetrack. The fake video…

Did a video from "Sky 8" really show a chimp on a scooter, on the run from police cars on a freeway and did this chimpanzee escape from "metro zoo" downtown? No, that's not true: The video of the Vespa-riding monkey bore the watermark of AI tool Sora and was generated using artificial intelligence. It contained several text artifacts typical…

Does an authentic video show the moment when a curious black bear climbed on a porch railing and woke a napping man? No, that's not true: This video is AI-generated. It has the watermark of Sora, an app from OpenAI which can generate videos from text-based prompts. The video (archived here) was posted on X by @DisrespectedThe on Oct. 6,…

Does a viral video show a real moment when a man is tricked into opening an airplane bathroom door with a woman inside? No, that's not true: The video was made and posted by a skit-maker and content creator. He has posted videos that show pranks or jokes being played on people. The woman in the plane bathroom appears in…

Does a video of a police pursuit of a person in a pickle costume show a real-life scene? No, that's not true: The pickle video bears the watermark of Sora, an app from Open AI that generates videos from text prompts. No news organizations reported that such a pursuit took place. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published…

Does a video of Argentina's President Javier Milei authentically capture him singing on stage? Yes, that's true: Milei performed at the Movistar Arena in Buenos Aires on October 6, 2025. Many media outlets covered the event. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published on X on October 8, 2025. It opened: 🇦🇷 Argentinian President Javier Milei held a…

Does a video show a real confrontation between a shouting protester and a man in uniform who identifies himself as Sgt. Pepper? No, that's not true: This video has a watermark from Sora, an app from Open AI that generates videos from text prompts. The TikTok account from which this video originated has posted several military-themed videos generated by Sora.…

Note: on October 9, 2025 Turning Point USA did make following announcement (archived here) on their X account: 🚨 HUGE ANNOUNCEMENT 🚨 It's true, Turning Point USA is thrilled to announce The All American Halftime Show. Performers and event details coming soon. On October 7, 2025 when this fact check was written they hadn't yet made such an announcement: Did…

Did U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi file a petition requesting to remove Bad Bunny from the 2026 Super Bowl halftime show? No, that's not true: Lead Stories searched publicly available documents from the Department of Justice and found no such petition. No credible media organizations reported on any such official action. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published…

Did the Russian cities of Vyborg, Petrozavodsk, and Murmansk decide with an overwhelming majority vote to leave Russia and join Finland? No, that's not true: This fictional multipart story is illustrated with an AI-generated image of "unidentified militants" and a fictional map of "Greater Finland". The fake news narrative is a twist on an idea from the early 1900s regarding…

Did Nike or Under Armour donate face masks and clothing to ICE agents involved in arresting undocumented immigrants in the United States? No, that's not true: The TikTok host making the claim gave no supporting information about how he confirmed the claim. Lead Stories found no evidence to support the claim and several red flags raising questions about the credibility…

Is Alisa Kasmer, the woman who posted a long message on Facebook attacking Stephen Miller, really Miller's cousin? Yes, that's true: Kasmer's post claimed that she babysat Miller and he is her first cousin. Lead Stories researched the White House Deputy Chief of Staff's family tree and confirmed that Kasmer, 43, is the daughter of Miller's paternal aunt. Photographs included…

Does a video show the moment Marimar Martinez was shot by a federal agent in southwest Chicago after she allegedly rammed a Department of Homeland Security SUV? No, that's not true: This video does not show the incident Martinez incident. It shows a different collision which happened later the same day a few blocks away. The miscaptioned video appeared in…

Does a video that looks like Ring doorbell footage authentically show a dog bringing a bear home onto the porch of a home? Unfortunately, no: Much to the disappointment and surprise of some viewers of the cute video, the footage is clearly AI generated. The VEO watermark logo on the lower right corner indicated it was made with Google's artificial…

Does CCTV footage authentically capture a bear's intrusion into a woman's bedroom? No, that's not true: The clip contained several visual artifacts consistent with generative AI production. Among those is a piece of furniture partially absorbed by a wall. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) published on October 2, 2025, on X, under the caption that read: This…

Did People magazine publish a satirical image of Donald Trump dressed like Marie Antoinette to illustrate an article about the White House Ballroom construction project? No, that's not true: People magazine illustrated the article with a standard portrait photo of Trump wearing a blue suit with red tie. A fake screenshot used the real article's headline and People logo --…

Did Buffalo Bills Coach Sean McDermott tell the press that he will pull his team from the 2026 Super Bowl because of the National Football League's choice to make Bad Bunny the 2026 halftime performer? No, that's not true: The Facebook page that said McDermott made such remarks wrote it happened before journalists but there were no actual news report…