Your weekly fact-checks
#Elections
Indonesia, the world's third largest democracy had an election on the 14th of February. In this election use of generative AI was widespread, everything from OpenAI to deepfakes.
Reuters
True: Indonesian presidential candidate using AI-generated cartoon to promote himself
The AI-generated cartoon has been central to the electoral rebranding of [defense minister] Prabowo, who is far ahead in polls. Instead of portraying himself as a fiery nationalist, as he did in two prior failed presidential bids, the 72-year-old's new catchphrase is "gemoy" - which is Indonesian slang for cute and cuddly.
Channel News Asia
True: AI-generated late president urges Indonesians to vote for legislative candidates from his party
The AI-generated video praises Jokowi and his predecessor Mr Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for carrying on the vision of [ex-president] Suharto, who died in 2008.
Nature
True: Nearly half of the world’s population lives in countries with elections this year
Seven of the world’s most populous countries are voting in 2024, with the Asian continent dominating that list. To name a few, elections will be held in Taiwan, India, Bangladesh, Russia, the UK, and the US.
#Health
PolitiFact
True: Postpartum Medicaid coverage expanded from three states to 43 states because of the Biden administration.
As of January 2021, Illinois, New Jersey and Virginia were the only states in which Medicaid subsidized 12 months of postpartum coverage.Today, 43 states have Medicaid coverage until 12 months postpartum.
PolitiFact
False: If a woman in Texas takes “abortion pills voluntarily,” she would be “charged with murder.”
A Texas law that criminalizes abortion went into effect in August 2022, after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. Under the law, physicians who provide abortions can be charged with a first-degree felony, punishable by up to 99 years in prison. Doctors also can face civil fines of $100,000. The new law explicitly says the criminal and civil penalties do not apply to women who get abortions.
PolitiFact
False: King Charles’ cancer diagnosis is linked to mRNA cancer therapy trial in U.K.
The first UK patient received mRNA cancer dose in October, months before reports of King Charles’ cancer.
#Ukraine
PolitiFact
False: Since Russia invaded Ukraine, “not a single Western journalist has bothered to interview Putin.”
Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, many journalists have requested interviews with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has said repeatedly the Kremlin regularly declines interview requests from large Western news outlets. He also said Carlson was "wrong" to claim journalists haven’t attempted to interview Putin.
#Nordics
Faktisk
Riktig: De som kommer til Norge som flyktninger får rundt 20 000 kr før skatt i måneden for å delta i introduksjonsprogrammet i noen måneder.
Det stemmer at flyktninger som deltar i introduksjonsprogrammet har rett på introduksjonsstønad, tilsvarende 19 770 kroner i måneden.
Tjekdet
Falsk: Israel vildleder i video om nødhjælp i Gaza
Israel begrænser ikke adgangen til humanitær hjælp i Gaza. Tværtimod faciliterer de israelske myndigheder overdragelsen af store mængder livreddende nødhjælp til palæstinenserne.
Reuters
False: UFO spotted in Sweden
A black-and-white clip of a disk-shaped UFO does not show real footage filmed in Sweden, despite the claim circulating online. The clip was created and shared by a video creator on Instagram.
#Other
Snopes
Outdated: Full-body imaging machines used by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) show a person’s private parts whenever they “walk through the X-ray scanner.”
The image above showing examples of TSA full-body scans is authentic and was captured using the agency's backscatter unit, hundreds of which were installed in U.S. airports in 2010. The devices were removed nationwide by 2013, however.
#WTF?! What The Fact of the week
PolitiFact
False: An 1871 law made the United States government a for-profit corporation.
The Organic Act of 1871 consolidated and restructured the District of Columbia’s government, it did not make the U.S. government a corporation. An anti-government extremist group called "sovereign citizens" spread the conspiracy theory that the law transformed the government into a corporation.
Our other products
Want to learn more about Factiverse? Click here for an overview.
ChatGPT Plugin
Concerned about hallucinations in ChatGPT? Use our plugin in the chatbot and verify information. We search real time in Google, Bing and Semantic Scholar simultaneously and propose the most credible sources. Try our GPT now!