Dear ‘Ban Gun’ Teenagers, 11 Teens Die a Day from Texting and Driving
A bad faith argument about texting and driving deaths aimed at “‘ban gun’ teenagers” has been shared more than a million times on social media.
viral facebook posts
‘10,874 People Killed by Drunk Drivers in 2017, 403 by Rifles but Walmart Stops Selling Rifles’ Meme
The numbers in a meme contrasting deaths by drunk driving with death by rifles in 2017 is mathematically accurate — but it’s also whataboutism.
‘There are 30,000 Gun Related Deaths Per Year by Firearms’
An authoritatively worded social media post about guns is a long-circulating mixture of decontextualized statistics and opinion.
Tim Allen ‘Trump 2020 or America Is Dead’ Commentary
In September 2019, a number of Facebook posts attributed a pro-Trump missive shared on the social network to actor Tim Allen — which happens to be a common name.
Did a Teen in Colorado Fall Gravely Ill From Vaping?
Nearly half a million Facebook users shared a post in which the parent of a hospitalized teenager laid the blame squarely on vaping.
‘This View of Hurricane Dorian Is Unlike Anything I’ve Ever Seen’
Is a viral image of a rainbow hurricane eye authentic and unaltered?
Is Olive Garden Funding Trump’s 2020 Campaign?
Yet another text-only Facebook post efficiently spread a false claim that a restaurant chain is giving its money to Donald Trump’s next presidential campaign.
Nine Things a Woman Couldn’t Do in 1971
Circulating posts contain a list of now-commonplace activities from which women were barred as recently as 1971.
Can You Use Breastmilk Topically to Treat Various Conditions?
Long-spreading lore and a viral Facebook post contain a laundry list of supposed conditions alleviated by the topical application of human breastmilk.
Was Dictator Joseph Stalin Once a Hip, Young Democratic Socialist?
A Facebook meme featuring a picture of young Joseph Stalin claims he was once basically a hipster dude espousing currently popular positions.