Politics

Was a video of Superbowl MVP Jalen Hurts enjoying a concert with his wife Bry Burrows recorded while his Philadelphia Eagles teammates visited President Donald Trump at the White House in April 2025? No, that's not true: The clip was recorded in July 2024. Hurts was one of several players who did not attend the traditional White House visit. The…

Did Senator Lindey Graham post on X about President Trump being open to the possibility of becoming Pope? Yes, that's true: Even though there was doubt screenshots showing such a post were real, Graham did post it. The message included the slogan "Trump MMXXVIII" which stands for "Trump 2028" in Roman numerals. Graham's post on X (archived here, here and…

Did Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney write "Western society is morally rotten ... corrupted by capitalism" in "Values", his 2021 book? No, that's not true: a book reviewer characterized Carney's views that way in an opinion article published by The National Post. Then, a social media post incorrectly attributed to Carney phrases that were actually the reviewer's. The quotes have…

Did a video shared in April 2025 show a real argument in a restaurant, where a woman tried to take a MAGA hat off a man, and expressed her opposition to President Donald Trump? No, that's not true: The video was a sketch, and did not depict a real event. On TikTok, the original creators described themselves as "actors and…

Does a viral video depict a real-life scene showing a woman protesting against being seated next to a man in a MAGA hat on a plane? No, that's not true: The footage was initially uploaded on the internet by an account that publishes sketches. Those clips show the same actors in various roles. The claim appeared in a post (archived…

Is a mugshot showing Judge Hannah Dugan in a grey polo shirt in front of a height chart real? No, that's not true: The image of the Milwaukee Judge who was arrested by the FBI for allegedly obstructing ICE agents appears to have been generated using generative artificial intelligence image makers. Two AI detection services rated the image more than…

Did an authentic photograph show several mourners wearing blue attire at the funeral of Pope Francis? No, that's not true: An image shared widely on social media had been digitally edited to change the color and tone of the clothes worn by several dignitaries, including former President Joe Biden. Some observers had criticized President Donald Trump for wearing a blue…

Was basketball player Steph Curry's mother Sonia denied service at a Ferrari dealership and did this lead to the creation of a campaign named "Respect in Every Space" in collaboration with Under Armour? No, that's not true: The viral social media story is very likely fictional as there is no trace of such a campaign on the website of Under…

Is a mugshot showing Judge Hannah Dugan crying while wearing an orange jumpsuit authentic? No, that's not true: The image of the judge who was arrested by the FBI for allegedly obstructing ICE agents appears to have been generated using AI tools. Two detection tools rated the chance of AI use at over 99%. An example of the image appeared…

Does a social media post include an authentic photo of former New Mexico Magistrate Judge Joel Cano standing pantsless in flip-flops with Cristhian Ortega-Lopez, the Venezuelan man he is accused of hiding from U.S. immigration officials? No, that's not true: The original image, in which Cano is fully clothed, was included with documents filed March 28, 2025, in federal court…

Does a viral video authentically portray U.S. Vice President JD Vance talking about "parodies" and "accusations" after visiting the Vatican hours before the death of Pope Francis? No, that's not true: The original sound was digitally replaced in the clip. The recording was first published nine months before the pontiff's death. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published…

Did U.S. President Donald Trump show a Fox News host a Trump 2028 hat placed on the wall in the Oval Office? No, that's not true: The viral video was digitally altered. The original Fox News segment showed Trump unveiling the Declaration of Independence. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published on X on April 25, 2025. It…

Did the New York Times fail to mention Nascimento Blair's kidnapping conviction and prison sentence in an April 2025 article about his deportation from the United States to Jamaica? No, that's not true: the authors mentioned the conviction and 15-year sentence in detail, and in several different parts of the article. Blair was convicted of first-degree kidnapping in 2006, released…

Did The Sun publish a video claiming Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle sold Princess Diana's iconic revenge dress to Ukraine's first lady Olena Zelenska for $2.9 million in April 2025? No, that's not true: There is no such story or video on The Sun's website or social media. The quote from "Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams" in the video was cut…

Did President Trump say in a Truth Social post on April 23, 2025 that he would sign an order to change the name of New Mexico to New America? No, that's not true: The post does not exist on Trump's Truth Social timeline and there is no evidence it ever did. The post includes the claim that the president visited…

Did President Donald Trump hide an acrostic message - spelling out "JD KILL POPE" - in an April 18, 2025 post to his Truth Social account three days before the death of Pope Francis? No, that's not true: The paragraph, marked in red to show a supposed acrostic message, was never posted by Trump's Truth Social account. The counterfeit screenshot…

Did U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi threaten that anyone saying "Fuck Trump" may get "15 years in El Salvador" for doing that? No, that's not true: The viral image with the supposed quote was not an authentic screenshot of Bondi's interview. In the picture circulating on social media, the contents of the lower banner were digitally replaced with a made-up…

Did the Trump Organization begin selling "Trump 2028" baseball hats in April 2025? Yes, that's true: social media posts and photographs accurately depicted a real listing on the website trumpstore.com, which is the the official retail website of the Trump Organization. The hats were listed at a price of $50. The claim that official "Trump 2028" hats had gone on…

Did the account of the Chinese Embassy in the U.S. on X post a cartoon depicting U.S. President Donald Trump as having a tariff-related tantrum? No, that's not true: As of this writing, the account's entries did not include that image. Answering Lead Stories' questions, an embassy spokesperson denied that either its official account on X or any other account…

Did JD Vance's sister take to social media to ask internet trolls to stop saying the Vice President killed Pope Francis? No, that's not true: The video is one of a series by comedian Blaire Erskine in which she has played roles such as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's baby sitter and a Trump voter waiting in the cold for a…