‘Jeffrey Westerfield’ Facebook Post
Viral posts purportedly describing the death of law enforcement officer Jeffrey Westerfield on his 47th birthday circulated in May 2021, co-opting language of the Black Lives Matter movement.
International Disinfo Machines Turning After State-Sponsored Kidnapping of Belarusian Journalist
Botnets, professional trolls, and enablers are following what should be by now a very familiar pattern.
‘AOC Announces She’s in Therapy’ and ‘Implies Lawmakers Effectively Served in War’ Interview Excerpt
A May 2021 interview given by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to public radio show Latino USA was presented in partial excerpts alongside disinformation about the events of January 6 2021.
The New Hampshire Election Audit
An avalanche of social media posts drew attention to the “NH election audit,” described as a bellwether for widespread 2020 fraud.
Asparagus for Hangovers
A popular Imgur post showed a bunch of asparagus with a cheery tip: “If you want to avoid a hangover, eat asparagus.”
Gretchen Whitmer Bar Photo
What year is it again? Partisan outlets circulated a gotcha image of Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) “violating social distancing guidelines” in May 2021.
Blendoor ‘Black Lives Matter’ Study
Several identical articles attributed various conclusions to a study conducted by startup company Blendoor concerning Black Lives Matter statements and workplace diversity.
Are People Returning Pandemic Pets?
Stories shaming bad behavior lead to easy clicks, such as claims that pandemic pets were being surrendered to shelters in record numbers.
‘Lieserl Einstein Donated 1,400 Lost Letters,’ ‘The Universal Force Is Love’ Facebook Post
A popular and long-circulating Facebook post about lost letters by Albert Einstein on the Theory of Relativity and love was inspiring — and utterly contradicted the little known about his daughter’s life.
‘Black Lives Matter Says It Stands with Hamas’ Fox News Stealth Edit
Fox News quietly changed a headline claiming that Black Lives Matter said it “stands with Hamas,” but aggregated versions by Fox affiliates (and Google cache) told a different story.