Truth or Fiction? – Page 253 – Seeking truth, exposing fiction

Do High Percentages of Refugees Receive Food Stamps, ‘Medicard,’ and Cash Welfare?

Disinformation, Fact Checks / By Kim LaCapria / April 5, 2019

In late March 2019, the following meme (archived here) appeared, making three separate and warmed-over claims about “refugees” in the United States and opining, “cut them off”: The Meme The image-based meme provided no citations or links substantiating its claims. Along with a photograph of a group of women wearing burqas, misspelled text read: MIDDLE …

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Does an Image Show ‘Worthless’ Money in the Gutter in Venezuela?

Disinformation, Fact Checks / By Kim LaCapria / April 4, 2019

On March 22 2019, a Facebook user shared the following post (archived here), purportedly showing unfathomable amounts of money discarded in a gutter in Venezuela. A caption said: This is a street in Venezuela. That’s money in the gutter. It’s worthless. Welcome to socialism. Although the image lacked any corroborating information (such as location, date, …

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Does a New Netflix Show Aim to Transform Boys into ‘Sexy’ Little Girls?

Disinformation, Fact Checks / By Kim LaCapria / April 4, 2019

In late March and early April 2019 an Instagram screenshot circulated on Facebook, asserting a “new Netflix show” aimed to transform boys into “sexy little girls.” The earlier iteration circulating in March appeared to have been removed or deleted (archived here), but a subsequent post (linked and archived above) was intact as of April 4 …

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Wave of Garbage On the Dominican Republic’s Coast?

Fact Checks, Viral Content / By Kim LaCapria / April 3, 2019

On March 18 2019 the Facebook page “Ascend (Podcast)” shared the following video (archived here), purportedly showing the shores of the Dominican Republic two days earlier: The status update read: ‘DEAD” Sea…………..no more plastic This was filmed two days ago off the Dominican Republic Coast. Our Oceans are dying. The clip was immensely popular in the …

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Did Rod Serling’s ‘Twilight Zone’ Use Sci-Fi to Push Politics Past Network Censors?

Entertainment, Fact Checks / By Kim LaCapria / April 3, 2019

The beginning of April 2019 also marked the premiere of the third television iteration of The Twilight Zone. This time, Rod Serling’s mid-century television classic series was rebooted with producer Jordan Peele at the helm. On the day the first two episodes were released — “Nightmare at 30,000 Feet,” a remake of the classic William Shatner episode, …

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Frida Kahlo: ‘Leaving is Not Enough’

Fact Checks, Viral Content / By Kim LaCapria / April 2, 2019

A popular and lengthy social media quote attributed to Frida Kahlo (containing the lines “leaving is not enough” and “take a lover who looks at you like maybe you are magic”) was shared once again in early April 2019 on Facebook — but the quote and its variations have been around for several years: A popular early …

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Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: ‘Socialism for the Rich, Rugged Individualism for the Poor’?

Fact Checks, Viral Content / By Kim LaCapria / April 2, 2019

Who said America has “socialism for the rich” and “rugged individualism for the poor” — MLK Jr. or Bernie Sanders?

April Fools’ Day 2019 Roundup

Entertainment, Reporting / By Kim LaCapria / April 1, 2019

Traditionally, April Fools’ Day is a major “internet holiday” — but in recent years, roundups have largely consisted of a series of commercials designed to go viral on social media. Here is a list of April Fools’ Day 2019 pranks we’re updating throughout the day:

Monster Supercell in Burwell, Nebraska

Fact Checks, Viral Content / By Kim LaCapria / March 29, 2019

On March 18 2019, a Facebook user shared the image below (archived here) with the caption “monster supercell, burwell, nebraska”: Several commenters expressed their concerns for the original poster’s safety, while others pointed out that they had seen the image before. A reverse image search returned matches as far back as July 2014, and the …

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Were 70 Christians Massacred by Muslims in March 2019?

Disinformation, Fact Checks / By Kim LaCapria / March 29, 2019

On March 19 2019, a Facebook user shared the status update below (archived here), claiming that 70 Nigerian Christians had been massacred by Muslims one day previously: Yesterday, muslims marched into a college in Nigeria, separated out the Christian students and killed them. 70 dead. Ten days later, the status had been shared tens of …

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