On July 14 2019, rumors began spreading on Instagram, Reddit, Discord, 4Chan, Twitter, and other social media sites about purported disturbing posts shared by Instagram user @YesJuliet about an alleged murder of a 17-year-old girl named Bianca Devins (@escty and @beegtfo.) Disturbing images were shared to 4Chan’s /pol/ board (archived here), and a longer thread updating …
Update, September 20 2019, 11:03 AM: In the early morning hours of September 20 2019, “#Area51Storm” and “Area 51” began trending on Twitter. (We were unable to find a valid Storm Area 51 livestream as the event unfolded.) A popular image set shared both to the “Storm Area 51, They Can’t Stop All of Us” Facebook …
‘Storm Area 51, They Can’t Stop All of Us,’ Explained Read More »
After the United States Women’s National Team beat the Netherlands 2 to 0 to win the World Cup in July 2019, the fans of the nation’s soccer team were delighted. It also lent serious heft to the players’ demand for pay and treatment equal to that of the U.S. Soccer mens’ teams in a lawsuit that USWNT …
Was the U.S. Women’s National Team Defeated by Teenaged Boys in a 2017 Soccer Match? Read More »
In June 2019, a Facebook user shared the following image (archived here), purportedly illustrating the poor state of affairs in Los Angeles in particular and California overall: Third world country? Nah, LA California. This is exactly what socialism is because California is now a socialist state so I hope you look carefully and see what …
A July 2018 Facebook warning about dogs suffering from water intoxication continued circulating in 2019, describing the unexpected death of an otherwise healthy pet: This appeared to be a copy of an individual’s Facebook post to a page with a broader audience, in an account explaining that a day at the lake resulted in a …
On July 1 2019, country hip-hop musician Montero Lamar Hill — better known as Lil Nas X — published tweets subtly alluding to his sexual orientation: Two hours [after tweeting about a UK appearance], the Atlanta-born [Lil Nas X] and arguably the new face of country music came out as a member of the LGBTQ …
Was Lil Nas X Dropped by Wrangler After He Came Out as Gay? Read More »
In July 2019, the Facebook page “Nerds Raging” shared the following Tumblr screenshot, which consists of one purported book passage about drive-through restaurants in ancient Rome and subsequent humorous commentary: Underneath a screenshot of text describing “fast food” restaurants in Rome (some of which purportedly had curbside service), additional text reads: GUYS. THERE WAS DRIVE-THROUGH …
On July 4 2019, the Facebook page “Gringott’s Bank of Enchanted Memes” shared a meme (archived here) illustrating a purported route through the United Kingdom with a number of licentious and salacious location names: From top to bottom, the plotted purported locations on the map were: Based on nomenclature alone, the listed places appeared to …
Is a ‘Perfect Road Trip’ of Obscenely-Named Towns Real? Read More »
In July 2019 Instagram cosplayer Belle Delphine offered her bathwater for sale, news of which was quickly followed by a rumor that purchasers were afflicted with herpes after drinking it. Prior to that story appearing, Insider reported: Belle Delphine recently gave her 3.9 million Instagram followers the chance to buy her bathwater for $30 a bottle. …
Did Fans Contract Herpes from Belle Delphine’s Bathwater? Read More »
On June 29 2019, the Facebook page “Be My Guest” shared a meme about the purportedly widespread, incorrect use of Glade brand air fresheners (archived here): Under text reading “I’ve been doing it wrong all my life,” two Glade air fresheners were displayed. On the left, with a red X, was what is likely the …
