Manufactured controversy about millennial affectations have nearly become a tradition all their own, and in 2018, news outlets took a shine to claims that “social justice warriors” (often shortened in internet parlance to the more derogatory “SJWs”) were “demanding” a gender-neutral Santa. Various versions of this story featured vague details about from where people might …
On December 12, 2018, a screenshot of a tweet attributed to Stephen King began circulating on Facebook and other social sites. It read: Fuck your wall. Split that 5 billion between at-risk children who don’t have lunches and vets who can’t get proper medical and psychological treatment. Fuck your vanity project. Do something good for …
Is a Scathing Stephen King Tweet About the Border Wall Real? Read More »
On December 11, 2018, a Facebook user shared the following image and caption purportedly showing a genuine calcified fetus: 80 year old lady [emoji], went to have a cat-scan, and they found a fetus that’s been in her cervix for 30 years The referenced phenomenon (a calcified fetus or lithopedion) is real, but many readers …
Did a Medical Scan of an 80-Year-Old Woman Reveal a Calcified Fetus? Read More »
On November 18, 2018, after destructive wildfires tore through northern California, the following image was shared to Facebook: Its caption read: A rattlesnake frozen in death during the California wildfires. His last defiant act was to strike at the flames that consumed him. RIP dear snake. This particular image (inaccurately) featured a location of “Paradise …
Is This a Real Photo of a Rattlesnake That Died in a Wildfire? Read More »
When the meme below appeared on Facebook via the page The Pink Shorts Movement on November 28 2018, we were skeptical: The text read: DID YOU KNOW: Airbags deploy between 100 & 220 MPH. If you ride with your feet on the dash, you may send your knees through your eye sockets if the airbag …
Can Airbags Send Your Knees ‘Through Your Eye Sockets’ When Deployed? Read More »
On December 9, 2018, the Facebook page “Unbelievable facts” shared the following meme, which held that nearly ten percent of Americans genuinely believed that chocolate milk was produced by brown cows: Users interested enough to go Googling for the provided citation at Unbelievable facts blog could locate the same meme, which featured a red button …
Do Nearly Ten Percent of Americans Think Chocolate Milk Comes from Brown Cows? Read More »
On December 3 2018, a Facebook user named Danny Rice shared the following image and caption (archived here): Please pray for us our Toys For Tots storage container were broken into and our toys taken! We have over 1,500 families to serve on the 15th please pray The post appeared with only a photograph of …
Is a Facebook Post About Stolen ‘Toys for Tots’ Christmas Gifts Legitimate? Read More »
On December 7 2018, the Facebook page Dysfuntional Veterans shared the following meme about a man named John “Chickie” Donohue and a Vietnam war “beer run”: The meme read: John “Chickie” Donohue, a merchant marine from New York City snuck into the war zone in Vietnam in the ’60s to DELIVER BEER to his three …
Did John ‘Chickie’ Donohue Pull off a War Zone ‘Beer Run’ in Vietnam? Read More »
On December 5 2018, The Blaze published an article titled “Principal banned candy canes because ‘J’ shape stands ‘for Jesus.’ But that was just for starters.” The item centered on a law firm devoted to “evangelical Christian” interests (Liberty Counsel), its assertion that Manchester Elementary School in Omaha, Nebraska had “banned” Christmas items, and its …
Did a Principal Ban Candy Canes Because the ‘J’ Symbolizes Jesus? Read More »
On November 29 2018, Twitter user @Plant_Phillips shared a transcribed image of a quote attributed to Charles Darwin: Even the most famous scientists have rough weeks. Charles Darwin, for example: “But I am very poorly today and very stupid and hate everybody and everything.” pic.twitter.com/o03pBG4ScI — Alyssa Phillips (@Plant_Phillips) November 30, 2018 A version was …
Did Charles Darwin Say He Hated ‘Everybody and Everything’ on a Difficult Day? Read More »
