Your weekly fact-checks
#AI Governance for Media: Free Virtual Event January 30th
On January 30, Factiverse's Smart Trust Virtual Summit brings together media leaders who've successfully implemented AI governance frameworks to share their practical risk management, vendor evaluation, and ROI measurement strategies.
This free virtual event (limited to 150 seats) offers actionable frameworks rather than theory—register at https://www.factiverse.ai/smart-trust-summit
#Greenland
Snopes
Half-true: Denmark warned in January 2026 that it would "shoot first, ask questions later" if the U.S. invaded Greenland.
A Danish law would require its military to fight back, even without orders, in the event of an attack on Danish territory or its forces. Denmark did not issue a warning that it would "shoot first and ask questions later" in the event of an invasion; it confirmed to Danish media that the preexisting defence law remains in force. The "shoot first" wording originated from English-language media.
Snopes
False: Michel Yakovleff, ex-general for NATO, said on French TV, "If Trump moves on Greenland, Europeans must be ready to fight the U.S."
Yakovleff did not make the statement attributed to him. He did give an interview on French TV in which he discussed Greenland, but his comments stopped short of explicitly calling for Europe to fight the U.S. in the event of an invasion. In an email to Snopes, Yakovleff said he would recommend Europe send a symbolic "small trigger force” to Greenland instead of actually "antagonising" the U.S.
#TrumpCheck
AP News
False: Trump said if U.S. does not acquire the island then it will fall into Chinese or Russian hands.
Experts have repeatedly rebuffed Trump’s claims of Chinese and Russian military forces lurking off Greenland’s coastline. Experts say Russia instead operates in the Barents Sea, off the Scandinavian coast, and both China and Russia have a presence in the Bering Sea south of Alaska.
AP News
False: Trump said Denmark’s defences in Greenland are "Two dog sleds.”
Denmark maintains Arctic sovereignty in Greenland through the elite Sirius Dog Sled Patrol, naval patrol ships, surveillance aircraft, and the Joint Arctic Command headquartered in Nuuk. The kingdom recently committed $2.3 billion to strengthen its military presence with new Arctic vessels and drones, while the U.S. operates Pituffik Space Base under a 1951 treaty for missile defense and space surveillance.
#Conflicts
Vishvasnews
False: Proof of Ukraine's attack on Russian Putin's palace has been acquired.
The viral CCTV footage claiming to show an attack on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s residence is AI-generated.
StopFake
False: Ukraine imported spent nuclear fuel to build a dirty bomb.
The Russian Defence Ministry’s claim that Ukraine is engaged in “nuclear blackmail” is unsupported. The International Atomic Energy Agency, which maintains continuous access to Ukraine’s nuclear facilities, has rejected allegations that Kyiv is preparing a “dirty bomb” or conducting undeclared nuclear activities.
#Politics
Lead Stories
False: Renee Good lost custody of her older children because her wife abused them with cigarettes.
No credible evidence shows that she lost custody or that her partner burned her children. Social media posts have circulated making those claims, but they cite no documents, police records or court files to support allegations of child abuse or a custody loss tied to such abuse.
Snopes
False: Minneapolis ICE shooting victim Renee Nicole Good mocked the 2025 assassination of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk.
A viral image claiming to show Renee Nicole Good mocking Charlie Kirk's death was fabricated by editing her head from a maternity photo onto a screenshot of a different woman at a protest. The doctored image, which spread across social media platforms, combined Good's likeness with footage from an unrelated October 2025 video, with background elements suggesting AI manipulation.
Lead Stories
Mostly False: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis defended Renee Good, the woman shot and killed by an ICE agent after refused to get out of her car and drove away from ICE agents who ordered her out of her car.
The clip is real, but was lifted from a June 2025 appearance on "The Rubin Report" podcast, six months before Good was killed. DeSantis was describing a Florida law that protects the right of drivers to escape when protesters or mobs try to block streets, even if that means driving through people trying to stop traffic.
#Economy
PolitiFact
False: "If we stop this fraud, this massive fraud, we're going to have a balanced budget."
The highest nationwide estimate puts U.S. fraud losses at $521 billion. Even if all of that could be recouped, it would amount to less than a third of the 2025 deficit of $1.775 trillion.
#Healthcare
Vera Files
False: All Filipino citizens aged 15 years old and above are required to undergo drug testing to be conducted house-to-house.
A video announcement circulating on Facebook claims that all Filipinos aged 15 years old and above must undergo house-to-house drug testing. This is fake and the clip was likely generated using artificial intelligence. A review of the official website and FB page of the Philippi
#Nordics
Tjekdet
Falsk: Denmark cannot sell Greenland at all and therefore cannot get money for Greenland.
Denmark cannot legally sell Greenland without Greenland first becoming independent through a referendum and negotiations—a process that would require consent from both Greenlandic and Danish governments. If Greenland were to gain independence, any subsequent sale or association agreement with the US would be Greenland's decision, and Greenland would receive any payment, not Denmark.
#WTF?! What The Fact of the week
Snopes
True: Dr. Seuss, children’s book author and illustrator, made a number of cartoons with racist images of Black people, some of whom are in blackface.
Dr. Seuss Enterprises stopped publishing six books in 2021 due to racist content, while historic cartoons created by Theodor Geisel in the 1920s-1940s featured offensive depictions of Black people in advertisements and magazine comics. These images, authenticated by UC San Diego's library and a prominent auction house, reveal a troubling aspect of the beloved children's author's early career as an illustrator.
Use Factiverse to extract crucial insights in real-time to strengthen your reporting
Factiverse helps media organisations and government teams monitor and analyse real-time reporting, identifying false narratives in elections before they spread. Reach out for a consultation to see how our tools can strengthen your reporting strategy
Member discussion