2018 midterms

Shepard Fairey street art encouraging people to vote.

Hundreds of Wrapped Voting Machines Discovered in a Georgia Warehouse?

Fact Checks, Politics / By /

The American midterm elections on November 6, 2018 transformed what is normally a relatively sleepy affair that receives little coverage into a bitter, heavily-tracked series of races around the country punctuated by scandals, violence, and unexpected twists and turns. Georgia’s gubernatorial election attracted particular attention because its Republican candidate, Brian Kemp, was serving as its …

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CNN reporter Jim Acosta.

Did a CNN Reporter Assault a White House Employee?

Disinformation, Fact Checks, Politics / By /

The morning after a hotly-contested midterm election resulted in Republicans resoundingly losing control of the House, United States President Donald Trump held a press conference to discuss the results and take questions from journalists. In the middle of the event, CNN reporter Jim Acosta stood to ask questions of Trump, including one about the ongoing …

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Painting of three crosses against a vibrant red background.

Was a Large ‘Make the Gospel Great Again’ Billboard Put Up in Missouri?

Fact Checks, Politics, Viral Content / By /

On November 3rd, 2018, just days before the United States held hotly-contested midterm elections, rumors appeared of a billboard by the side of a Missouri interstate that featured United States President Donald Trump’s face with a strange, slightly ominous Biblical message: It references John 1:14, which reads in full: The Word became flesh and made his …

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Three men sitting behind a chain link border fence.

Were Seven Children Rescued From Smugglers Embedded in a ‘Migrant Caravan’ in Guatemala?

Disinformation, Fact Checks, Politics / By /

On October 25th, 2018, as bots and paid trolls pushed talking points on social media about a caravan of people from Honduras on their way to Mexico’s border with the United States to turn themselves in to seek asylum, the Judicial Watch blog published a shocking story about seven children who were saved from human …

Were Seven Children Rescued From Smugglers Embedded in a ‘Migrant Caravan’ in Guatemala? Read More »

Connecticut GOP Sends Mailer Showing Jewish Candidate Grinning at Fistful of Money

News / By /

In late October 2018, just days after a gunman — reportedly encouraged by racist political  rhetoric — slaughtered eleven people during a service at Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life synagogue, Connecticut’s Republican candidate for a state senate seat sent out a flyer that showed his Democratic opponent Rep. Matthew Lesser (who is Jewish) grinning over a fistful …

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Social Security card atop a pile of United States dollars.

The ‘All Democrats Voted Against a Social Security Raise’ Meme

Disinformation, Fact Checks, Politics / By /

Weeks before the 2018 United States’ midterm elections, propaganda from across the political spectrum flew thick and fast. Some of it contained grains of truth, while other stories were completely made up, such as a particularly lazy cut-and-paste meme that appeared in mid-October: The meme asks rhetorically, without citation or supporting evidence: Were any of you aware …

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