Were ‘Alien Enthusiasts’ Shot and Killed at Area 51?
A site calling itself “the ultimate clickbait” hinges on readers sharing its prank stories with a ringer for a legitimate new site’s URL.
Fact Checks
Did Elvis Presley Receive a Polio Vaccination on Live TV in 1956 and Raise Immunization Revels to 80 Percent?
A Reddit user deemed Presley a good “influencer” in a post that claims the singer’s televised 1956 polio vaccination helped boost the vaccine’s popularity.
Did Nikola Tesla Describe Mobile Phones in 1926?
A purportedly prescient quote credited to the inventor and engineer appears to predict cellular phones.
Five Iron Workers Atop a Tower ‘Selfie’
A photograph of death-defying construction workers circulated on social media as the “mother of all selfies.”
Did Ronald Reagan Say ‘Under No Pretext Should Arms and Ammunition Be Surrendered’?
A meme spreading virally online falsely credits the former president with a distorted version of a quote from Karl Marx.
Causes of Death Per Day and Rifles Meme
A social media meme purportedly lists causes of death per day in the United States, with rifles coming in lower than nearly any other manner of death.
Did Robin Williams Cheer Up a Paralyzed Christopher Reeve by Pretending to be a Proctologist?
A viral Facebook post tells a heartwarming story about the bond of friendship between the two actors.
‘Rep. Ilhan Omar Partied on 9/11 Anniversary’ Claim
Deleted tweets can make clarifying chain-based claims difficult — but the internet never forgets.
Is a Box of Ivanka Trump’s Footwear Marked ‘Tariff Exempt’?
A circulating image of a box of the Trump-branded footwear appeared to be stamped “tarriff [sic] exempt”… but it wasn’t.
Did Maxine Waters Say 700 Billion People Will Lose Healthcare Coverage in a Trumpcare Bill?
A September 2019 meme from TPUSA claimed that the lawmaker dramatically overestimated the population of the United States.