U.S. Military Dogs Being Evacuated From Afghanistan
Images showing American military dogs getting flown out of Afghanistan were virally popular on social media.
Fact Checks
The Wismer House $10 ‘Fine’ for Overnight Parking
An Imgur repost showed a “parking fine” from the Wismer House “levied” on a patron who parked there overnight.
Goatse Ring
Early 2000s internet users immediately spotted an uncomfortable resemblance to a proto-meme in the form of a suggestive ring.
Robin Williams ‘Penpal’ Story
A screenshot of a person named Kyle’s heartfelt anecdote about being Robin Williams’ penpal spread virally in August 2021 — but the account was then suspended by Reddit.
No, a Study Didn’t Find That ‘the Most Highly-Educated Americans Are Also the Most Vaccine-Hesitant’
A mischaracterization of a pre-print study about “vaccine hesitancy” further advanced anti-vaxxer falsehoods.
Campground Sign ‘Translated for Teenagers’
A pair of campground signs (one translated for “teenagers”) went viral across social media in August 2021.
‘The Starlight Barking’
A whimsical Twitter thread about the purported literary sequel to 101 Dalmatians was popular on Facebook in August 2021.
Ranking of the Most Common Birthdays
A Facebook post purportedly ranked the “most common birthdays.”
Are Japan’s Olympic Medals Made From Recycled Electronics?
A popular Imgur post purportedly showed and described Japan’s Olympic medals for 2021.
‘Zabol Priestess with a Golden Eye’
A tweet about a “5,000-year-old prosthetic eye found near Zabol in Iran” on the skeleton of an “unnaturally tall” priestess was popular in August 2021.