A February 28 2019 Facebook post (archived here) shared the image reproduced above with the following text: I shared this picture a few minutes ago, then about 5 minutes after I shared it, the post was removed from my page and also from the page of who I shared it. The statue represents a guardian …
Guardian Angel Crying at the Cradle of an Aborted Fetus? Read More »
On January 30 2019, this meme (archived here) appeared on Facebook, containing a claim (without sources or citations) that migrants in a caravan carried a frightening ailment known as “derma chronic autoimmune disease.” The post featured two close-cropped images of mens’ torsos. Text across those two photographs said: SEVERAL OF THE CARAVAN MIGRANTS WERE SUFFERING FROM …
On March 3 2019, a Canadian Facebook user shared a “public service announcement” about a purportedly bizarre and new strain of streptococcus aureus going around (post archived here.) The poster referenced a second post of hers (archived here) about the purported strain of strep, as well as a February 26 2019 post by a woman in …
Is a ‘Bizarre New Strain of Strep’ Causing a Rash and Infecting Sinuses? Read More »
On March 18 2019, just days after a right-wing extremist traveled from Australia to Christchurch, New Zealand to murder fifty people at two mosques during Friday prayers, British conservative commentator Theodora Dickinson posted a video of a burning building on Twitter with the following commentary: In response to the New Zealand mosque attacks, Islamists have …
Retaliatory Attack on Christian Church in Pakistan? Read More »
On March 16 2019, the Facebook page “Blossom” shared a video entitled “8 mind-blowing transformations you can do at home!” to its page and to Facebook Watch. The video raked in a massive 58 million views in just a few days, and its claims were big ones. In a series of DIY/hack montages similar to perplexing …
8 Mind-Blowing Transformations You Can Do at Home? Read More »
In March 2019, a Facebook user shared a meme (archived here) which claimed that the “OK sign” hand gesture is both favored by white supremacists, and that it is also American Sign Language for the word “asshole”: The meme’s text read: HERE’S A BUNCH OF WHITE NATIONALISTS FROM ORANGE COUNTY FLASHING THE HAND SIGN FOR …
Is the ‘OK’ Hand Sign Also American Sign Language for ‘Asshole’? Read More »
In March 2019, two viral Facebook posts circulated with an image of an alarmingly inaccurate “Why Did Slaves Come to America?” worksheet. The viral Facebook posts were part of a larger controversy in February and March 2019 about myriad incomplete, deeply inaccurate, and outright misleading school lessons on slavery in various places across the United States in …
‘Why Did Slaves Come to America?’ School Worksheet Read More »
A long-circulating meme suggests that the “praying” emoji is definitively a “high five,” and a common iteration (seen above) shows a search for the term “highfive” with commentary such as “y’all be high fiving people’s deaths.” The origin of the meme is not clear, but it makes the rounds on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and other …
On March 14 2019, the Facebook page “Pictures in History” shared an image (archived here) with the following status update: Unwanted babies for sale in France during World War II, 1940 This wasn’t this particular group’s first such outlandish claim. In late February 2019, the page shared a widely-reposted image purportedly showing wives engaged in a “Christmas tradition” of …
Is This a World War II Photograph of Unwanted Babies for Sale in France? Read More »
The March 2019 wide release of documentary Leaving Neverland prompted a flurry of social media activity, among the posts was a meme purportedly quoting comedian Dave Chappelle about reaction to the documentary, Michael Jackson, and the Catholic Church: Originally published via Facebook by “The Mind Unleashed” on March 11 2019 (archived here), the meme’s text was …
