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A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

Meme Resurrects, and Distorts, 2009 Airport Scuffle

Meme Resurrects, and Distorts, 2009 Airport Scuffle

Q: Did President Barack Obama in 2009 have a journalist named Brenda Lee removed from Air Force One?
A: No. Lee, a newspaper contributor, was physically removed from a press area outside the aircraft in Los Angeles — before Obama arrived. 

Ford Did Not Recant Accusations Against Kavanaugh

Ford Did Not Recant Accusations Against Kavanaugh

Q: Did Christine Blasey Ford recant her accusations of sexual assault against Brett Kavanaugh?

A: No. Comments by President Trump may have left that impression. But he was referring to a little-known case that had nothing to do with Ford.

Viral Meme Misidentifies Nazi Guard as Soros

Viral Meme Misidentifies Nazi Guard as Soros

Q: Is there a bogus viral meme circulating online that purports to show Holocaust survivor George Soros as a Nazi soldier?

A: It is bogus. The photo in the meme is of a Nazi guard who died earlier this year. It is not Soros.

Sinema’s Taliban Comment in Context

Sinema’s Taliban Comment in Context

Q: Is it true that Arizona Democrat Kyrsten Sinema said it is OK for Americans to join the Taliban and/or terrorists?
A: Sinema made what she called an “offhand comment” when a radio interviewer in 2003 posed a hypothetical about making a “personal decision” to fight for the Taliban.

Meme Misleads on Menendez Case

Meme Misleads on Menendez Case

Q: Is Sen. Robert Menendez on trial — and was his co-defendant convicted on prostitution charges — as an online meme says?

A: No. Menendez was tried on corruption charges last year, but was not convicted. His co-defendant was found guilty of defrauding Medicare in an unrelated case.

A Misleading $17 Million Hush Money Claim

A Misleading $17 Million Hush Money Claim

Q: Has $17 million in taxpayer money been spent on sexual harassment settlements for members of Congress?

A: No. That figure also includes payments for other types of settlements, as well as payments on behalf of employees other than members of Congress over a 21-year period.

Viral Photo Doesn’t Show Soros with Ford

Viral Photo Doesn’t Show Soros with Ford

Q: Is there a photo circulating online that shows Christine Blasey Ford with George Soros? 

A: No. The woman featured in the viral photo with Soros isn’t Ford.

After McCain’s Death, a False Claim Resurfaces

After McCain’s Death, a False Claim Resurfaces

Q: Did John McCain “hide the fact that he ‘accidentally’ killed 134 American sailors”?

A: No. He wasn’t responsible for the fatal 1967 accident aboard the USS Forrestal.

Bogus Claim of Voter Fraud in Ohio

Bogus Claim of Voter Fraud in Ohio

Q: Were there “major signs of voter fraud” in Ohio’s congressional special election?

A: No. The Ohio Secretary of State’s office says there have been no reports of voter fraud.