A story about a woman cheerfully embarking on her 27th straight abortion hit social media in October 2018, shocking readers who learned about Elena Travis, the 34-year-old med school student with an unusual hobby (but a heart of gold): The historic operation was performed at the Sacramento Street Health Center and required Elena Travis, 34, …
Pro-Choice Activist Breaks World Record With 27th Abortion? Read More »
The Union County, Arkansas sheriff’s department has responded to widespread outrage in October 2018 about its policy of photographing inmates in shirts bearing the Nike slogan: The Sheriff in Union County, Arkansas is putting Nike t-shirts on people they arrest and making them wear them during mugshots. Source says it is to mock Nike and …
Is Arkansas Law Enforcement Photographing Inmates in ‘Nike’ Gear? Read More »
When Hurricane Michael slammed into Mexico Beach, Florida on October 10th, 2018, the massive storm caused as-yet untold amounts of damage, leveling homes for miles: Amid images of survivors and the aftermath, the usual hurricane hoaxes began to appear, like this one: Caption: “Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport – Panama City Beach, FL” The post …
In October 2018, a warning appeared and made its way around the usual internet circles to warn against eating meat from deer afflicted with “bovine tuberculosis.” The warning was accompanied by a rather unappetizing photograph of a lesion-studded hunk of meat that showed what people should avoid: This warning (and the accompanying photograph) is legitimate, …
Pop superstar Taylor Swift — once a darling of the far-right and alt-right crowds because of her “Aryan goddess” looks and their own fevered imaginations — broke a years-long policy of silence on political matters in October 2018 to endorse a political party on her Instagram account: I’m writing this post about the upcoming midterm elections …
Taylor Swift’s Political Endorsements: The Rumors and the Reality Read More »
LaCroix sparkling water has had something of a moment, but anything popular comes with detractors. The fruity, low-calorie beverage met its own in October 2018 in the form of a class-action lawsuit that claims, among other things, that the drink contains ingredients used in cockroach insecticide. Chicago-based law firm Beaumont Costales also slammed LaCroix for false …
Imagine, if you will: A presidential election in which even the most basic facts are riddled with confusing disinformation, a far-right candidate appealing to authoritarians and repulsing many women with misogynistic comments, and connections to political aspirants such as Marine Le Pen and Steve Bannon. This is Brazil in 2018, and the person who was …
Brazil Holds Election Amid Disinformation, Propaganda Crisis Read More »
A viral video making the social media rounds on October 4th, 2018 shows President Donald Trump carefully ascending the stairs to Air Force One on the tarmac in Minneapolis, Minnesota — with a piece of paper stuck to the back of his left shoe, then pausing at the top and waving before disappearing into the …
Did President Donald Trump Board Air Force One With Paper Stuck to His Shoe? Read More »
In early October 2018, the usual purveyors and pushers of disinformation were anxious to take advantage of the controversy surrounding Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh to ride the ad revenue wave from whatever satire or clickbait they could think up. Most of that centered around various outlandish rumors surrounding his multiple accusers, but at least …
Testing for a new cellular phone alert system (the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System, also known as IPAWS) began on October 3rd, 2018, with a tone and a message sent across mobile networks. The grumbling began almost immediately, as startled or irritated Americans reacted to the unsolicited (but anticipated) test, but the griping turned …
Do Mobile Phones and Other 4G Devices Contain an ‘E911 Chip’? Read More »
