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All English Fact Checks

False: A clip shows then-House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosiopenlyadmitting how Democrats get the media to legitimize lies using a tactic called the “wrap-up smear.” A video circulating widely on Instagram in recent days has given new life to the erroneous claim that Pelosi spilled the beans on Democratic smear tactics by omitting part of her answer to a reporter’s question. (Source: Associated Press - AP News)

The government has p...: The government has provided cost of living interventions of more than £3,300 for every single family in the UK. "It is only because of the strength of our United Kingdom that we are able to afford interventions to deal with, for instance, the cost of living, providing more than £3,300 for every single family in our United Kingdom." Oliver Dowden MP, 17 May 2023 . At Prime Minister's Questi (Source: Full Fact)

False: Every scientific publication on coronaviruses from 1990 to 2018 found vaccines do not work against the virus type. The claim that every scientific publication from 1990 to 2018 found vaccines do not work on coronaviruses is false. While research found vaccines could fight coronaviruses, there was never a demand for a human vaccine prior to COVID-19. Since the start of the pandemic, a copious amount of research has shown the COVID-19 vaccines are highly effective. It is estimated that in their first year alone, vaccines saved 19.8m lives worldwide. (Source: Australian Associated Press - AAP)

False: Earth hasn’t warmed since the mid-1980s and has only warmed by 0.7C since the 1850s. The claim earth hasn’t warmed since the mid-1980s and has only warmed by 0.7C since the 1850s is false. Temperature records from various sources reveal warming of around 1.1C since the 1850s with the greatest rate of change occurring in recent decades. Climate experts told AAP FactCheck wider claims going back centuries about temperatures rising and cooling at specific points are harder to prove, but the scientific consensus is temperatures are now higher than 90 per cent of the Holocene era covering the past 11,000 years. (Source: Australian Associated Press - AAP)

False: EMA recommends COVID vaccine during pregnancy The European Medicines Agency (EMA) encourages pregnant women to get vaccinated against COVID-19 and has not said that the vaccines cause female infertility, contrary to social media posts claiming the EMA has “admitted” the vaccine adversely affects female fertility. Social medi (Source: Reuters)

Miscaptioned: Video footage of Ukraine dam blast is from November 2022 not June 2023 Grainy footage of explosions over the Nova Kakhovka dam in Kherson, Ukraine in November 2022 circulating on social media does not show the breach of the structure in June 2023. Online users shared the old video with a caption saying it shows “the moment that the Nova Kakhovka dam (Source: Reuters)

False: Mosque near horrific train accident site in India Social media posts circulating after India's worst train crash in decades falsely claim an aerial photo of the site shows a mosque nearby -- suggesting Muslims were responsible for the tragedy. But an AFP journalist visited the crash site in eastern Odisha state and found the structure being highlighted in the posts is actually a temple belonging to a Hindu religious sect. Local police said they are investigating the cause of the crash but dismissed communal links, warning "severe legal action" against those spreading such claims. (Source: Agence France-Presse - AFP)

False: Police stomps on Indian female wrestler Sakshi Malik's face A photo showing an Indian police officer stepping on a person's head has been shared on social media alongside false claims that the person in the picture is Sakshi Malik, an Olympic medalist in wrestling who took part in recent rallies in New Delhi. The photo was in fact taken in 2021 during protests by Indian farmers over several contentious laws pushed through by the government. (Source: Agence France-Presse - AFP)

False: Man books all seats at Shanghai cinema on Valentine's Day A photo has been shared on Facebook in Nigeria with a claim that it shows a single man who booked all the seats in a Shanghai cinema to prevent couples from sitting together on Valentine’s Day. But this is false: the image was taken in a Beijing cinema on July 24, 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic when the number of moviegoers was restricted to keep social distance protocol in place at the time. (Source: Agence France-Presse - AFP)

False: Photos show Donald Trump embracing Anthony Fauci with a hug and kiss A new Ron DeSantis campaign video attacking Donald Trump purports to show three photos of the former president embracing Anthony Fauci, a key member of the US coronavirus task force, with kisses on the cheek. But the images have the markings of fakes created using artificial intelligence technology, three experts in media forensics told AFP. (Source: Agence France-Presse - AFP)

From “Destroyed By A Ukrainian Strike” To “There Was No Explosion At All”:  how Russia is changing the rhetoric of its lies about the attack on the Kakhovska HPP On the night of June 6, Russia committed another crime on the territory of Ukraine — the occupation forces blew up the Kakhovska Hydroelectric Power Plant. As usual, the Kremlin immediately began spreading disinformation, trying to convince the whole world that Ukraine was suppos (Source: Vox Ukraine)

False: Jamie Foxx tras una coagulación de sangre en el cerebro "habría quedado ciego y paralizado" debido a una "dosis de vacuna contra el coronavirus". No hay evidencia de que el actor Jamie Foxx está paralizado y ciego como resultado de la vacuna del COVID-19. (Source: PolitiFact)

Pants-Fire: Amazon’s “Utopia” TV series predicted the COVID-19 pandemic and an intentional effort to sterilize humans, showing the pandemic was planned. The 2020 conspiracy-thriller TV series "Utopia" did not predict the COVID-19 pandemic, or prove that the outbreak was planned or that the vaccines cause infertility. The show’s creator said it is a work of fiction written in 2013.Research has found that COVID-19 vaccines do not affect fertility. (Source: PolitiFact)

False: The COVID vaccine “has been proven to have negative efficacy.” The studies Johnson’s office sent examined COVID vaccine effectiveness, not efficacy. Efficacy refers to how well a vaccine performs in a clinical trial, and each of the vaccines were highly efficacious when they debuted. Even overlooking that, the claim is off base. The studies do demonstrate waning protection against an omicron infection, but they don’t mean that getting vaccinated caused an increased risk of infection. What’s more, the goal of the vaccines wasn’t to block infection – it was to prevent severe illness and death, which the same studies show is still happening. (Source: PolitiFact)

False: California reproductive health bill does not legalize infanticide A California reproductive health bill was amended to clarify its language around “perinatal deaths” before it passed last year, but online posts in June 2023 recirculating claims that it legalizes infanticide are false. Assembly Bill 2223 was part of a package of bills protecting (Source: Reuters)

False: Fake Courrier International cover depicts Ukrainian forces crossing Styx An image of a fabricated Courrier International magazine cover circulating online does not appear in the French outlet’s online archive of authentic covers and Courrier International took to Twitter to confirm that it is fake. The cartoon cover depicting Ukrainian forces crossing (Source: Reuters)

False: The Arc de Triomphe in Paris was ‘defaced with a giant rainbow to celebrate pride’ Rainbow-decorated Arc de Triomphe is 3D animation, not physical artwork | Fact checkShow Caption Hide Caption Arc de Triomphe gets wrapped in fabric as late artist Christo's vision realized Paris' Arc de Triomphe has been covered in 25,000 square meters of fabric as part of an art installation envisioned by the late artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude. The artists behind the piece told USA TODAY it was a virtual creation meant to celebrate Pride Month. Virtual artwork created to celebrate Pride Month, no physical art added to monumentThe Arc de Triomphe, a neoclassical structure commissioned in 1806 to commemorate French military victories, has since become a symbol of the nation’s identity. Surveillance footage taken of the area around the Arc de Triomphe in early June showed it did not have any rainbow-themed additions. USA TODAY reached out to users who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response. (Source: USA Today)

All German Fact Checks

Größtenteils Falsch: Der gleiche Richter, der Lina E. nach Mordanschlägen freigelassen habe, habe die „Gruppe Freital“ wegen einer eingeschlagenen Windschutzscheibe und ein paar Böllern zu zehn Jahren Haft verurteilt. Das Urteil gegen Lina E. polarisiert. Die Linksextremistin wurde Ende Mai wegen der Mitgliedschaft in einer kriminellen Vereinigung zu fünf Jahren und drei Monaten Haftverurteilt. Das finden manche zu milde, andere zu scharf.  In Sozialen Netzwerken wird vielfach dieselbe Aussage (Source: Correctiv)

Frei Erfunden: 170 Kärcher-Produkte seien aufgrund kleiner Kratzer zu verschenken. Auf Facebook wirbt die Seite „Kärcher Fans“ für ein verlockendes Angebot: Angeblich könne das Unternehmen Kärcher zerkratzte Produkte nicht mehr verkaufen, also würden sie verschenkt. Bei der Aktion handelt es sich jedoch um eine Betrugsmasche. Üblicherweise verfolgen solche gefä (Source: Correctiv)

Teilweise Falsch: Laut einem Sharepic habe Jörg Kachelmann in einem Tweet „die globale Hitzewelle“ als „Lüge“ bezeichnet. Zudem heißt es, in 21 Jahren Erderwärmung habe sich die Erde um 0,0 Grad erwärmt. Leugnet Wetterexperte Jörg Kachelmann in einem aktuellen Tweet den Klimawandel? Das soll ein Sharepic belegen, das sich seit Ende Mai dutzendfach auf Facebook verbreitet. „Die globale Hitzewelle weltweit und gleichzeitig ist eine Lüge“, steht in einem vermeintlichen Tweet Kachelm (Source: Correctiv)

Falscher Kontext: Ein neuer Kälterekord in der Antarktis zeige, dass es die globale Erwärmung nicht gibt. AufFacebookundTwitterverbreitete sich im Mai die Behauptung, ein neuer Kälterekord in der Antarktis zeige, dass die globale Erwärmung Schwindel sei. Der Beweis sei die extreme Kälte, die im Mai am Südpol geherrscht habe. Normalerweise wird es dort erst im Juli sehr kalt. Die Erst (Source: Correctiv)